Could Covid put hunting back on the map?

Could Covid put hunting back on the map? The global pandemic has caused massive disruption to incomes, industries and supply chains that has resulted in wide spread food shortages. But there’s one change Covid-19 has wrought that many did not see coming – it has sparked interest in learning to hunt and seen applications for hunting licences double in some parts of the world. 

How a virus put hunting back on the map

It is no secret that for the last few years, hunting as an industry, has taken some pretty big hits. Gun control, animal activism, and urbanisation have all had an impact on people’s interest in learning to hunt. But to be honest, hunters themselves have also been pretty bad at recruiting new hunters, 

The situation looked so dire that, in February 2020, The Washington Post wrote an article stating that hunting was dying off and would soon be gone. 

But then a virus came along, and flipped everything we know upside down! 

When Covid-19 first emerged out of China, very few people could have imagined the effect it would have on the world and the disruption it would cause global supply chains.

Within a few short months, the world as we knew it changed. Social distancing became the most popular buzz word as governments started forcing citizens into lockdown. Overnight, those would could not work from home or who weren’t considered essential lost their jobs. Many industries ground to a halt, and any non-essential travel was deemed high risk, making a trip to the supermarket the highlight of many people’s week.

Then supermarket shelves started emptying. At first it was just toilet paper and hand sanitiser disappearing off the shelves but like the virus itself, it soon spread to basic food items: milk, bread, flour, meat. At first the food shortages were simply due to panic buying, and the supermarkets reacted swiftly, implementing purchase limits on many items.

Then the virus started disrupting actual supply chains.

Supermarket distribution centres shut down as workers contracted Covid. Abattoirs and meat works were forced to close. Food production was halted at several factories. Online delivery services were cancelled. And with fewer backpackers able to travel, fruit and vegetables were left rotting in the field.

The supermarkets again reacted, reintroducing restrictions and raising grocery prices to combat the food shortages. 

Suddenly people were dealing with a dramatic shift in their incomes – many for the very first time – plus the additional stress of food shortages that made feeding their families more difficult. 

Food banks and charity organisations reported a sudden spike in requests for emergency assistance. While they answered the call as best they could, many of these organisations faced their own challenges, with donations down, and their own access to food supplies under threat.

Trust in self

Governments around the world implemented economic stimulus packages to prop up spending, and try to stave off a full scale depression. But with global supply chains showing huge cracks and food shortages becoming a growing issue, people lost faith in the system, and started looking inwards for their survival.

Internet searches during quarantine showed growing interest in being self-reliant. Prepping emerged from the fringes of society and become a reality for the mainstream. Almost overnight, the need to source food outside of supermarkets became a necessity. 

Vegetable gardens were back in vogue and chicken coops sprung up in suburban backyards. People rediscovered lost skills like how to bake their own bread. 

But the one thing many people never expected was for hunting to make a come back.  

A recent study by the Tasmanian government revealed the pandemic had changed people at the core, shifting their life priorities. With many people facing economic instability and food shortages for the first time, they started expressing an interest in learning to hunt, catch or grow their own food. 

The trend was not just limited to Tasmania but was mirrored  around the world. 

In America, both Reuters and High Country News reported that widespread food shortages had resulted in a dramatic rise in the number of people hunting and fishing. The number of hunting licenses in Wyoming rose by 10%, while on the other side of the country, The Poughkeepsie Journal reported hunting licences increased by a whopping 130% and Vermont saw a 50% increase in licenses. New York also saw a 10% increase in the number of people completing hunter education programs, with 40% of all new hunters being women. 

In Canada, Indigenous tribes responded to Covid by turning back to the land and sea to hunt food and catch fish.