Exporting, Transporting or Storing Fish

Transporting Sport Fish in Ontario Fact Sheet

From the May long weekend, well into late fall, thousands of anglers will travel provincial highways to fish Ontario’s many lakes. Throughout the fishing season, resident and non-resident anglers will steal away to secret fishing holes in search of their favorite catch of walleye, perch, bass or northern pike.

Anglers who may be considering a fishing trip in the near future need to ensure they are transporting fish home in compliance with the Ontario Fishery Regulations, which help protect fisheries resources.

When packaging fish you must ensure that a Conservation Officer can determine:

- the number of fish you have
- the species of fish that you have, and
- the length of fish or fillets when a size limit is in effect

Packaged fish fillets are tough for conservation officers to inspect. These packages sometimes contain many fillets that are either frozen or have been cut up into small pieces, or both. Sometimes skin is left on the fillets, other times it isn’t.


Here are a few helpful hints to ensure your catch is being properly transported:

Tips For Transporting Packaged Fish

1. Package each fish individually or arrange your fish in a clear freezer bag. Lie the fillets flat in the bag. A layer of water can be added to further protect the fillets. DON’T freeze your fillets and package them in a container such as a milk carton or margarine tub. A large lump of fillets frozen in bags is not acceptable either. Remember, fish have to be packaged in such a way that they can be easily counted.

2. Ensure you leave a piece of skin, at least an inch square, on all fish fillets for identification purposes. Fillets look a lot alike regardless of their species and can only be properly identified by a patch of skin. Since anglers often transport various species of fish, it’s their responsibility to ensure each and every fillet of their catch can be identified.

3. Conservation Officers could inspect your catch at any time. Always have your fish and your licences easily accessible. Pack your coolers of fish last and where they can be quickly inspected. It’s inconvenient for anglers to have to unload a vehicle to find licences and coolers.

4. Last but not least, before planning your trip, ensure you pick up a copy of the Ministry of Natural Resources (MNR) 2003 Recreational Fishing Summary. (Please see page 6 of the Summary for more information on transporting fish in Ontario). The summary can be picked up at any outlet selling fishing and hunting licences or at any MNR office. If you have questions about any regulation, contact the Ministry of Natural Resources office in the area that you intend to fish.

The fishing season also means Ministry of Natural Resources Conservation Officers will step up enforcement efforts to ensure anglers are complying with regulations. Each year, these officers routinely conduct boat patrols, camp checks, fly-ins over remote lakes and scheduled road check stations.

During these patrols they will inspect thousands of sportfish being transported across the province. Most inspections show that the majority of anglers are complying with Ontario’s sport fishing laws. However when it comes to properly transporting cleaned and packaged sport fish, compliance levels fall.

If a Conservation Officer inspects the sport fish you’re transporting and finds they are improperly packaged:

- Your catch may be seized for evidence.
- Your favorite fishing rod may be seized as well.
- You could get a ticket and be fined.
- You may have to attend court, usually close to where the inspection took place and far away from where you live.

It’s definitely not how people want to remember their fishing trip.