Concord, New Hampshire bill passed

CONCORD, N.H. Diners who favor meat from elk and red deer would be able to shoot their own in New Hampshire under a proposal that passed the House today.

The hotly debated bill passed 217-to-98.

The bill would allow buyers to go to a farm where red deer or elk are raised, select an animal to be shot and take the carcass home.

Objections came from lawmakers who saw this an unfair form of hunting. But supporters argued this is a way to support an alternative form of livestock farming when the cost to take these animals to federally approved slaughterhouses is prohibitive.

Supporters say farmers who raise red deer and elk are suffering in a market that no longer allows them to ship animals to other states because of concerns about contagious chronic wasting disease that kills deer.