Catfish Packaging and Availability

U.S. Farm-Raised Catfish is available in any of these general forms:

  • Whole (fresh)
  • Dressed (headed, eviscerated, and skinned fresh or frozen)
  • Steaks (cross-section cuts from larger dressed fish fresh or frozen)
  • Fillets (boned sides of the fish, cut lengthwise away from the backbone fresh or frozen)
  • Regular and shank fillets (regular fillets have the belly section attached, shank fillets have the belly section removed fresh or frozen)
  • Nuggets (boneless pieces cut from the belly section of the fillet fresh or frozen)
  • Strips and fingers (smaller pieces of fish cut from from fillets fresh or frozen)

U.S. Farm-Raised Catfish is available packed in any of the following manners:

  • Ice pack (ice and fresh catfish combined in a box)
  • Dry pack (fresh catfish packed in a polybag inside a larger poly bag with ice)
  • Polybag pack (fresh catfish packed inside a polybag and placed inside a wax-covered ice pack box)
  • Tubs or pans of fresh or marinated (fresh catfish packed in plastic tubs with lids placed inside a master wax-covered box fresh or frozen)
  • IQF (water-glazed and individually flash-frozen; frozen individual catfish portions are placed in polybags, sealed in wax-covered freezer containers)

U.S.Farm-Raised Catfish may come in a variety of prepared forms including:

  • Breaded
  • Marinated
Farm-raised catfish is available to the foodservice operator in many forms, both frozen and fresh. Catfish processors are working constantly on developing new foodservice products and improving existing product lines to fill the ever-evolving needs of operators. This fish is extremenly versatile, mild flavored and practically indestructable in the kitchen. Overcooking catfish is difficult to do, which is why it fits so well into so many types of operations.