Excessive human consumption of saturated fatty acids and possibly cholesterol is thought to increase the risk of occlusive vascular disease. This has focused attention on ruminant tissues which tend to contain high proportions of saturated fatty acids compared with other meat species, although their cholesterol contents are reported to be quite similar. However, there have been claims, apparently unsubstantiated, that vension has a low cholesterol content and is a healthy food. The aims of this study were to determine the cholesterol contents of muscle and adipose tissue of deer and to investigate their relationship to carcass fatness and tissue fatty acid composition, particularly as venison lipids are reported to be very high saturated.