As fears spread about possible meat shortages during the coronavirus pandemic due to many meat processing plants being forced to shut down, many Americans are turning to hunting for food themselves, as reported by Reuters.
The story starts with a focus on David Elliott, a 37-year-old emergency manager at the Holy Cross Hospital in Taos, New Mexico, who had recently submitted his paperwork for New Mexico’s “annual elk permit draw.” The article then focuses on numerous other examples from around the country, including teachers and building contractors, as examples of many cases of regular Americans turning to big-game hunting in order to secure their own meat during the shortage.
Reuters reports that there has been a spike in applications for hunting licenses or license sales with various game and fish agencies, from Minnesota to New Mexico. Indiana is reported to have seen a 28 percent increase in the sale of turkey licenses in the first week of this year’s hunting season. In addition, firearm sales have also skyrocketed, with the FBI confirming that 3.74 million background checks for firearms purchases were carried out in March, a historic record for any month in recent memory.
Addressing the fears of a possible meat shortage, President Donald Trump announced that he would be using the Defense Production Act to mandate meat processing facilities to remain open.