California recently became the 29th state to legalize eating roadkill.
State legislatures are responding to demand from a resourceful segment of the public, and to a substantial supply lying by the side of the nation’s roads.
Here’s a quick rundown:
In one day, a million mammals, birds, and other vertebrates die on America’s highways.
Only about half of major collisions between animals and vehicles are reported.
Of those, 90% involve deer, a reflection of their high population in areas near human settlements and away from their historic predators.
Cars hit more than a million deer in the U.S. each year.
Much of the venison from those crashes can be salvaged.
Eating a wild creature that’s died on the highway may sound disturbing, but it can apparently be okay, if you know what you’re doing.
States differ regarding which animals are legal to claim, and which times of year are open season. Several require permits, or mandate that you report any game meat you’ve collected. Alaska considers all roadkill state property, and when possible, distributes the meat to people in need.
Some animal rights advocates actually promote taking meat from accidental kills as a more humane alternative to factory farming. Connoisseurs note that wild game can have a varied and natural diet, adding to the flavor profile.
And if it’s a good size deer, it could provide 60 to 70 pounds of free venison without the need to go hunting. Highway meat also steers clear of additives like growth hormones, antibiotics, or E. coli from an unsanitary slaughterhouse.
So what should you, roadside consumer, look for in the meat aisle?
First make sure the victim is dead. Injured animals should be immediately reported to wildlife officials in case they can be rehabilitated or humanely euthanized. And needless to say, don’t use your car as a weapon to purposely kill an animal. It’s illegal and extremely dangerous—200 people die in animal related auto accidents every year in the United States.
Assuming the animal is already dead, the key to successfully making a meal of roadkill is not eating a rotting carcass. Check for a milky color in the eyeballs. That can mean that your intended dinner has been laying by the side of the road for an extended period of time. Likewise, note that the presence of flies means they have beat you to the haunch; maggots are self-explanatory. Everyone agrees that a bloated carcass is bad news.
You may also want to forego eating rodents, particularly in the American West. They can harbor fleas infected with the Yesinia pestis, the bacteria that causes bubonic plague. It’s rare, but in a very few cases, people in Western states have contracted the plague.
If the carcass is badly crushed, or has ruptured stomach, then it’s not suitable for consumption—and check also if it’s close to any sort of toxic waste contamination.
California’s new rules are slated to go into effect by 2022. The pilot program will cover three regions of the state designated as roadkill harvest zones. Animals available for roadside salvage will include deer, elk, wild pigs, and pronghorns, and explicitly exclude endangered species.
Opportunities for Californians to take advantage of the policy may be scarce. According to State Farm Insurance, California actually has the second lowest rate of deer collisions, following Hawaii. California drivers have less than a 1-in-1,000 chance of ever hitting a deer.
For motorists in West Virginia, the leading state for deer-car crashes, it’s 1-in-43.
So if you want to try roadkill, but haven’t stumbled on a fresh carcass while carrying tools for dismembering, you may want to visit that state in September for the West Virginia Roadkill Cook-off in the town of Marlinton. Ready to strike out on your own? There are plenty of available roadkill recipes. So if you take a liking to, say, the bear meat tacos, you may decide to look beyond McDonalds for your next meal on the road. Just watch out for cars.
"eat" - Google News
January 27, 2020 at 08:59PM
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It's legal to eat roadkill in more than half the United States. But is it a good idea? - The Hill
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