Hunting Vs Buying Meat
12-08-2015, 05:19 AM
#1
Spike
Thread Starter
Join Date: Oct 2015
Location: PA
Posts: 7
Hunting Vs Buying Meat
I get asked if hunting for meat is cheaper than buying it at the grocery store. I've never done the math, so I don't know exactly. But I found a couple perspectives about it online.
Tasting the Clean Stuff
Memories in Every Meal
Traditional Hunter in a Modern World
I think it's about more than just the meat. The memories with my Dad are what is most important to me. What are your thoughts?
Tasting the Clean Stuff
Memories in Every Meal
Traditional Hunter in a Modern World
I think it's about more than just the meat. The memories with my Dad are what is most important to me. What are your thoughts?
12-08-2015, 05:58 AM
#3
Fork Horn
Join Date: Aug 2012
Location: Minnesota
Posts: 118
When you consider all the gear, travel, meals, etc...wild game is pretty expensive! But you are getting meat that is inaccessible by any other means so in those terms, it's priceless.
I tried keeping a record of all my hunting expenses last year. I started in January and gave up on January 31st because I didn't like seeing the truth
That said, let's just take my bow - $500 for the bow, $130 in arrows, $70 in broadheads. So $700. If I shoot a 100 pound doe, I'll get 40 pounds of meat. That's $17.50 per pound. However, I shot two deer this year (a 140 pound buck and a doe) putting me at around $7.29 a pound. Every deer I shoot the cost per pound decreases. Same with all the other equipment I have invested in. I'm kind of an equipment geek so I'm always buying stuff, but I don't think my dad has bought anything for deer hunting in about 25 years aside from a license and bullets so his meat is pretty cheap.
So long story short, tell your wife you need to shoot more deer to increase the ROI on your investment. It just makes fiscal sense!
And you are not just paying for meat, you're paying for the experience. Break the costs down by hour of hunting and you'll find that it is one of the cheapest activities you can enjoy.
I tried keeping a record of all my hunting expenses last year. I started in January and gave up on January 31st because I didn't like seeing the truth
That said, let's just take my bow - $500 for the bow, $130 in arrows, $70 in broadheads. So $700. If I shoot a 100 pound doe, I'll get 40 pounds of meat. That's $17.50 per pound. However, I shot two deer this year (a 140 pound buck and a doe) putting me at around $7.29 a pound. Every deer I shoot the cost per pound decreases. Same with all the other equipment I have invested in. I'm kind of an equipment geek so I'm always buying stuff, but I don't think my dad has bought anything for deer hunting in about 25 years aside from a license and bullets so his meat is pretty cheap.
So long story short, tell your wife you need to shoot more deer to increase the ROI on your investment. It just makes fiscal sense!
And you are not just paying for meat, you're paying for the experience. Break the costs down by hour of hunting and you'll find that it is one of the cheapest activities you can enjoy.
12-08-2015, 08:20 AM
#4
Typical Buck
Join Date: Nov 2011
Location: IN.
Posts: 530
I figure if I spent just have the time in the woods and worked OT for those hours I could buy all the meat I wanted and be money ahead but where is the fun in that. And besides If I dont get outdoors to recharge there is no one in this world who could stand to be around me, especially my wife so then i would have to figure the cost of a divorce into the equation! Way to complicated!
12-08-2015, 07:49 PM
#5
Nontypical Buck
Join Date: Oct 2009
Location: WI
Posts: 1,089
Well if your going to buy venison, i think it's usually red deer around here, from a store it's very expensive. Even the "cheap" beef fat thats disguised as burger you get from the store ain't cheap $3-$4 per lb. When i get venison from the woods around my property it's cheaper and better then store bought beef, when i go out of state hunting the venison can get a little spendy.
12-20-2015, 07:40 AM
#8
Nontypical Buck
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: Virginia / West Virginia
Posts: 4,906
Hunting (like any hobby) is not really cheap. Sure you could buy one cheap gun or bow and use it forever, don't spend much on accessories, never go out of state or on a trip, and it wouldn't cost that much long term. But nobody does that which is why its a multi-billion dollar per year industry.
If I had to guess, many pay 2-3x what the best store bought red meat would cost. I shoot alot of deer, and I'm sure I'm still way in the hole. But to save $ certainly isn't why I hunt at all, getting some nice meat is a bonus.
12-20-2015, 07:47 AM
#9
Nontypical Buck
Join Date: Jun 2010
Location: VA.
Posts: 1,415
No doubt.
Hunting (like any hobby) is not really cheap. Sure you could buy one cheap gun or bow and use it forever, don't spend much on accessories, never go out of state or on a trip, and it wouldn't cost that much long term. But nobody does that which is why its a multi-billion dollar per year industry.
If I had to guess, many pay 2-3x what the best store bought red meat would cost. I shoot alot of deer, and I'm sure I'm still way in the hole. But to save $ certainly isn't why I hunt at all, getting some nice meat is a bonus.
Hunting (like any hobby) is not really cheap. Sure you could buy one cheap gun or bow and use it forever, don't spend much on accessories, never go out of state or on a trip, and it wouldn't cost that much long term. But nobody does that which is why its a multi-billion dollar per year industry.
If I had to guess, many pay 2-3x what the best store bought red meat would cost. I shoot alot of deer, and I'm sure I'm still way in the hole. But to save $ certainly isn't why I hunt at all, getting some nice meat is a bonus.
12-22-2015, 04:00 AM
#10
Spike
Join Date: Dec 2015
Location: NY
Posts: 13
The true costs of venison
This makes me think of the old adage "there's no such thing as a free lunch".
I hunt in western NY where we have very limited public land. I tried to hunt public land when I first started hunting - and was confronted by an army in orange.
I've long since bought some property to serve as my hunting camp, where my friends and family hunt with me. While they get off "cheap" just paying for tags, gear, firearms, ammo, meals, etc., I have the cost of the property and the yearly taxes coming from my wallet.
I concur with the other thoughts here: no one goes hunting for the sake of the cost of the meat. It's all about the experience and the relationships, and the time in the woods.
Any meat harvested is just a small bonus in comparison.
I hunt in western NY where we have very limited public land. I tried to hunt public land when I first started hunting - and was confronted by an army in orange.
I've long since bought some property to serve as my hunting camp, where my friends and family hunt with me. While they get off "cheap" just paying for tags, gear, firearms, ammo, meals, etc., I have the cost of the property and the yearly taxes coming from my wallet.
I concur with the other thoughts here: no one goes hunting for the sake of the cost of the meat. It's all about the experience and the relationships, and the time in the woods.
Any meat harvested is just a small bonus in comparison.