HAGERSVILLE—A group of local hunters is warning others about meat processing issues at a local butcher.
The group, who asked to be anonymous due to an ongoing Ministry of Natural Resources investigation, told The Press they went to Jepson’s Fresh Meats to recover their deer on Friday, November 29, 2024. When they arrived, there were signs saying the shop was closed.
The Jepson’s website states: “TO OUR VALUED CUSTOMERS: Both our Hagersville and Hamilton locations are closed until further notice as we deal with a family matter. We apologize for the inconvenience. We appreciate your business and look forward to serving you again soon.”
The hunters said they refused to leave until they were handed their deer, and that eventually someone from the business assisted them. According to the hunters, “They’re all carcasses.” The hunters shared photos with The Press which show deer carcasses with discoloured meat.
In total, the hunters retrieved 15 deer on November 29, and said around 15 other deer remained unclaimed, as well as moose.
The hunters noted they had used Jepson’s Meats in the past with no issues.
One impacted hunter said their lost deer would have supplied their family with red meat for the year, while other hunters lost up to seven or eight deer. They noted, “It’s a big impact to our pocketbook. It’s a big impact to our way of life too. Like my kids have grown up on venison.”
The hunter called the situation “absolutely devastating.”
They said it was very upsetting to know an animal lost their life “for literally no reason.”
“We just want to prevent that from happening in the future. I just don’t want it to happen to anybody else,” the hunter added.
A health inspection report from Haldimand and Norfolk Health and Social Services dated November 21 found four critical infractions, two of which were corrected during the inspection.
The two outstanding issues were food not being protected from contamination or adulteration, and failure to ensure “uninspected game meat in the food premises is handled and maintained as prescribed in the regulation.”
Alexis Atkinson, Program Manager for Environmental Health with Health and Social Services in Haldimand and Norfolk, noted that they have “not confirmed the claims made” by the hunters as of December 2.
“The Ontario Food Premises Regulation allows butchers to process uninspected game meat for hunters with some conditions. Those conditions, which include labeling of carcasses and sanitization of tools and surfaces, are designed to prevent the sale of uninspected meat to the public as well as protect the supply of inspected meat from cross-contamination,” explained Atkinson on the usual process.
On the recent inspection done at Jepson’s, she stated, “(The inspector) observed uninspected game meat in the cooler. At the time of the inspection, the uninspected meat was observed to be properly stored to prevent contamination of inspected meat. The infraction noted on the inspection report was related to missing information on a label. The inspector provided education to the operator and set a follow-up date to ensure their procedures were updated to be in compliance with the regulation.”
The inspector did not observe any “rotting wild game carcasses” in the facility at that time.
“Public Health Inspectors do not assess or evaluate the quality or condition of uninspected meat. Because of the uncontrolled nature of the slaughter and dressing of the carcass prior to arrival at the butcher, all uninspected game meat is considered unfit for sale to the public and is therefore only allowed to be processed and given back to the legal owner,” noted Atkinson.
Ron and Luisa Jepson provided this statement to The Press on behalf of the business: “This situation is regrettable and upsetting, and we feel terrible about these circumstances. It is valid and fair to want to prevent this from happening again, and we encourage and support those affected to pursue the action they feel is necessary. As a longstanding family-run business, we appreciate the care and concern our community has expressed toward our family at this time.”
