Where Does Fishing Bait Come From?
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- Business is hopping at Vados Bait & Tackle in Spring Lake Park. Shiners, fatheads, nightcrawlers, leeches and a special minnow river mix are among the top-sellers before Minnesota's 2018 Fishing Opener.
So, that has Jason from St. Paul wanting to know: "Where does all the bait come from?" Good Question.
"A lot of hard work by a lot of really cool people," said Greg Fisher, co-owner of Vados.
Trappers catch the minnows via traps in rivers, lakes, ponds and swamps. They catch leeches in similar places via traps.
"Leeches tend to eat dead things, and you just have to get back there before they leave," Fisher says.
Worms are generally harvested by hand, and much of that work happens in Canada.
Fisher said all of the live bait at Vados was caught within the past three or four days. Much of it was caught just a day earlier, given the turnover two days before the Opener.