Seed Award Spotlight: Frazier’s Fish House

In our “Seed Award Spotlight” series, we asked the Fall 2024 Seed Award winners about their experience as a food or farm entrepreneur, including the passion behind their business, and their vision for positive change in their community. This January, 18 Seed Award winners were chosen to receive seed funding totaling almost $250,000. These grants represent not just financial investment, but an acknowledgment of the vital role farms and food distributors play in advancing Michigan’s food value chain.

Among the distinguished recipients is Frazier’s Fish House, a tribal-owned commercial fishing business located in the scenic Great Lakes region of Epoufette, Michigan. Frazier’s Fish House has built a robust operation that spans local, state, and interstate markets, providing a variety of fish products including fresh, frozen, smoked, and specialty items like jerky and dip. As a family-run business deeply connected to their community and heritage, they not only catch and process their fish but also actively contribute to sustaining the local ecosystem and economy through responsible fishing practices.

Keep reading to learn more about Frazier’s Fish House and how their commitment to quality and community involvement is making waves across the Great Lakes and beyond.

Name: Debra & Dave Frazier
Business Name: Frazier’s Fish House

What does being selected as a Seed Award winner mean to you personally, and how does it reflect on the journey of your business so far?               

Being a new family-owned small business, this award will allow us to take the next steps in expanding our business. Everything that we have done so far has been in small stages, so by receiving the Seed Award, this will help us push forward with the stages that might not have been possible to start without receiving this.              

In what ways will the Seed Award funding support your immediate and long-term business goals?

The funding will help us add a larger fish processing space in the future months. Long-term this will help speed up fish processing for our store and provide a higher quality product for the public. Expanding will also give us the opportunity to sell products at other retail locations and possibly online eventually.       

Can you share your vision for the positive changes this award will enable you to make in your business and the broader community?               

By receiving this award, we will be able to expand our facility. By adding a larger processing space, it will help increase our production and also potentially help to employ more people. This will also allow us to produce a larger variety of fresh and smoked fish products to sell at our store as well as other retail locations.  

What led you to start your business? What motivates you to do what you do?

Fishing has been in our family’s heritage for many years. Growing up around the fishing environment has given us a strong understanding of how the fish is caught, processed, and then sold. Over the years we have gained a strong understanding of providing the highest quality fish products that we possibly can. By starting Frazier’s Fish House, we have opened the opportunity for the community and surrounding areas to get fish products without having to travel long distances.                

Want to try fresh fish from Fraizier’s Fish House? Visit their Facebook to find their Epoufette location and learn more about their products.