"We are probably three-quarters of the way to filling it again," Crowser said. "The general feeling among game wardens is it's quieter in the field and there've been fewer violations so far. We've confiscated fewer animals."

The Food Bank Network gets between 10,000 and 20,000 pounds of wild game a year throughout the state, according to operations director Michael Gardner. That's 10 percent to 20 percent of the 100,000 pounds of meat it distributes to its 196 client agencies. All of it becomes burger to make it easier to divvy up.

Food banks have struggled with various ways of accepting wild game. The Food Bank Network used to operate a cannery at the Montana State Prison that could process carcasses into burger. But it had to stop in April because of budgetary limits.

"Now we take confiscated animals to whatever processor is local and convenient and giving us a good deal," Gardner said. Individual hunters wanting to donate their kills are asked to call the network first to work out arrangements. That could mean delivering it to a meatpacker close to where the hunt took place, as is often the case when Missoula hunters travel to the eastern part of the state. It also means the hunter needs to pay for the processing cost.