Lawmakers are considering loosening regulations to allow imports to remedy the shortage. In an effort to cut down on invasive species of fish being introduced, Minnesota doesn’t allow minnows to be imported from other states. Koep added that Minnesota’s strict bait laws are also creating hurdles. “And in the spring you don’t know what you have until you actually get to the lake and see if it’s a 100% kill or if there’s actually some live bait left in there to reproduce for that next hatch.”

“The tough winter we had, a lot of these things died out because the oxygen levels got so low that these minnows that are in there have… They just died underneath the ice then they get covered,” Marshall Koep of Urbank Live Bait Co. The Clitherall store also said that the minnow supply could be impacted for years to come.

As we head toward the Walleye Opener on May 13, there may not be enough minnows to go around.Īccording to Urbank Live Bait Company, one of the largest minnow providers in the state, Minnesota’s long, cold winter did some damage to our ponds - where most minnows are grown. Bait shops face minnow shortages ahead of this year’s fishing seasonįishing season is almost here in Minnesota - but bait shops across the state are having trouble finding enough minnows.Īccording to the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, minnow harvests fell at least 25% between 20.

Fishing planet live bait shop prices