Each year, hunters participating in Bedford County’s Hunters for the Hungry program donate thousands of pounds of venison to help feed those in need. Food insecurity is a top issue for Bedford County, and an analysis of local food pantry inventories revealed that lean, healthy protein is often in shortest supply. High protein venison offers an ideal solution.

But not everyone knows how to cook venison.

Looking for a way to turn the donated meat into a product busy families could easily consume, Denny Huff, Executive Director at Bedford Community Health Foundation turned to his colleagues at Bedford County’s Virginia Cooperative Extension office. 

“Working together, we decided to process the venison into stew, which is a shelf-stable product someone without access to a full kitchen or a busy family can easily heat up to enjoy together,” said Susan Prillaman, family and consumer sciences Extension agent. “Since 2023, we’ve canned 1,400 quarts of both venison chili and stew and distributed them to food banks and community organizations across Bedford County.”

Bringing cross-sector groups together

The effort, known as Canning for a Cause, brings together diverse sections of the community. 

The Bedford Community Health Foundation provided seed funding of just over $3,000, which was used to purchase canning supplies and ingredients. Virginia Cooperative Extension developed a scalable, safe recipe for venison stew and leads the canning events making sure volunteers have necessary food safety training. Hunters for the Hungry supplied the meat and some of their volunteers even participated in canning days. The Central Virginia Health District and Bedford County Parks and Recreation staff contributed resources, oversight, and coordination. 

“The biggest impact of the program is how it has brought leaders in the community together for one common goal,” said Prillaman. “Everyone looked at their own programs and came together around the idea of making Bedford’s food system more resilient and sustainable for those in need.”

Volunteers make it happen

Volunteers—including Master Food Volunteers and members of other local groups—staff the canning events, processing and cooking the venison stew before packaging and sealing the finished product. They even helped fine-tune the flavor of the commercial-scale stew and chili recipes Prillaman now uses.

Before getting started, participants receive a version of the Cooking for a Crowd training, along with instruction in safe canning practices — skills they can also apply at home.

People stand in a large industrial kitchen as a man stirs a pot.
Volunteers work at the New London Cannery. Photo courtesy of Sandy Seals.

Bringing life to the New London Cannery, an underutilized asset

Cooking and canning take place at the New London Cannery, a community canning facility operated by Bedford County Parks and Recreation, and one of only 11 public canneries remaining in Virginia.

“We’re maximizing the impact of this public asset,” said Scott Baker, unit coordinator and agriculture and natural resources Extension agent. “As home food processing habits have changed over the years, the cannery has become underutilized. With this project, we’re demonstrating the cannery’s value for emergency food production, education, and long-term food system resilience.”

Laying the foundation for a resilient food system

This cross-sector teamwork created a model that is already spreading. Inspired by Bedford’s success, the Central Virginia Health District collaborated with the Piedmont Health District to replicate the program in Farmville, producing more than 1,200 additional quarts of stew.

And when Hurricane Helene struck the region in 2024, many of the same collaborators mobilized again—processing 1,000 pounds of donated apples from Gross Orchard into applesauce at the New London Cannery. The finished product was shipped to impacted communities across Virginia and North Carolina through the nonprofit Gleaning for the World.

“This project serves as a blueprint for how counties can creatively align their resources to meet the complex, evolving needs of their communities,” said Baker. “We’re demonstrating the value of our community cannery, bringing together cross-sector partners, and addressing food insecurity in a tangible way.”

And they’re also producing some pretty tasty stew.

“Even if you think you don’t like venison, you’ll like this!” Baker adds.