Most questions revolve around freight and we are constantly working on ways to reduce it so keep checking back, asking questions, and giving advice.

Please note that we charge you the same freight that we get charged and do not want to make money in this area. Other companies raise the prices of all of their products then have a flat rate that they pay for with the extra money they made on the fish. We prefer to make the price fair for all and so it will cost more to ship to Florida than Indiana.

We encourage you to order more than the minimum as this will reduce your overall freight price per pound or split with a neighbor--just like you would from a fishing trip.

 


Q: How much is it to ship to _______?
A: The only way to accurately know is to choose your fish fillet for your shopping cart and click the blue "Estimate Shipping" button where you enter your zip code and state. The freight depends on the weight, where you are shipping to, and how fast you want the fish.

Q: I don't need 5 or 11 pounds because I don't want to thaw it all out. Do you have any smaller quantities?
A: We get this question all the time. You do not need to thaw out the whole batch at once. All the freshwater fish fillets are Individually Quality Frozen (IQF) which means they are immediately flash frozen after being cleaned so you can just grab one fillet from the bag when you need it. So we also don't have any smaller quantities because it doesn't make sense to ship such a small quantity. The shipping and handling would be more than the fish.

Q: Can I get a freight quote without giving you my credit card?
A: Yes, there is an estimate freight button in the shopping cart and you also will see the prices and options before you enter any credit card info.

Q: Overnight or Economy?
A: The packaging is designed to keep the fish fillets frozen for three days. However, delays happen and we have no control over packages once they leave our warehouse. For that reason we only guarantee overnight delivery to be completely frozen solid. Economy delivery is perfectly fine for 99% of shipments, but in the middle of summer to Las Vegas you are rolling the dice. If you have any concerns--go overnight. Economy will save you some money, but the dry ice may be gone by the time it gets to your freezer. The fillets on the outer edge may start to thaw. All that being said, most of our orders are Economy and I ship to myself in San Diego in 3 days even in the summer and the shipment arrives fully frozen. The shipping page has even more details.

Q: Where do the fish come from?
A: Most of our walleye, lake perch, bluegill, northern pike, lake trout and crappie are wild caught in pristine northern lakes of Canada by Native Americans using sustainable harvesting practices. Canada's lakes are well managed, unpolluted, and have an abundance of freshwater fish. Rainbow trout are farm-raised in Idaho or Canada. Lutefisk is different, (our only seafood) and comes from North Atlantic cod in Norway.

Q: How are the fish processed and packaged?
A: The majority of our fish is caught using gill nets. The harvest is iced down, taken to delivery points, and rushed to the packing plant. Facilities strategically located across the freshwater fishing region receive, grade, re-ice, pack and ship to market. They are then shipped across the border to our facility where it is stored in deep freeze at -18 degrees F. The fillets are IQF (flash frozen) so although they may be together it is very simple to grab one or two fillets from the box without thawing the group.

Q: How are the fish shipped?
A: We used to ship from Minnesota, but now we have a new more centrally located facility in Nebraska to keep freight costs low. The fish are already individually frozen and packaged together in a plastic bag inside a cardboard box. Then placed in an insulated styrofoam box with blocks of dry ice and then stored in a refrigerated area before the shipper arrives. We have continually improved our packaging since 2006 and have improved every year.

Q: If I ordered on Thursday, where is my fish?
A: We clearly note in the ordering section that we ship we don't ship Thursday through Sunday (OK, some overnights on Thursday) as well as on your receipt. We do this so that the fish will never have to sit in a warehouse over the weekend and spoil. Also we need time to process the orders and get them ready for the shipper to pick up. For example, an order placed on Tuesday will ship on Wednesday, but an Economy order placed on Wednesday afternoon won't ship until the following Monday or Tuesday. It's not because we are slow--this is done to insure that your product arrives fresh. However, exceptions do happen, please call if you need something different and I may be able to accommodate.

Q: Can I get tracking information?
A: Yes, if you provided the correct email when you submitted your order, it should be sent to you automatically at the end of the day it ships. It does take a little bit, and if you still don't see it check your spam as these don't always make it to the inbox, or please send us an email.

Q: Can you ship on my FEDEX/UPS account?
A: Sure thing. Give us a call. However, I'd be very surprised if you have a better rate than we do, but we are not trying to make money on freight. And to ship 11 pounds of fish you would end up paying for 20+ pounds after packaging and dimension issues.

Q: Do you have gift baskets?
A: Yes, we make a great unique gift item. We can create custom corporate gift baskets and can personalize and include any extras you can send us.

Q: What is your return policy?
A: Because it is a highly perishable food item, we do not accept returns. If you choose overnight shipping, we absolutely guarantee that the product will arrive frozen. For Economy shipping, we do not guarantee it will arrive perfectly frozen, but we've had thousands of shipments arrive perfectly fine. (see above) Economy shipping is fine as long as you are available to pick up the item and it doesn't sit outside an extra day. Also in regards to returns--we are subject to FDA regulations and can't take back food that has been out of our control. Much like you wouldn't want a delivery that has been to a customer's place and back, we can't accept returns on highly perishable food either.

Q: Do you have a local pickup location?
A: Sorry, no. We ship from a large distribution center with lots of trucks coming and going and no retail section.