Nothing about fish packaging is decided by appearance. It is decided by how wet the product is, how cold it has to stay, how long it is in transit and what happens to the board while all of that is going on. Order from fish fillet boxes once the spec below is settled.
Answer these before the dieline
- Chilled or frozen? Frozen product is dry and hard. Chilled product weeps, and weeping is what destroys board strength.
- What touches the board? A vacuum pack, a tray, a poly liner or the fillet itself. These are four different specifications.
- Is there ice or a gel pack? Melt water has to go somewhere, which means either a sealed liner or designed drainage.
- How long in transit? A same day local delivery and a multi day shipment need different insulation and different board.
- What is the filled weight? Wet product is heavy, and a wet box is weaker than a dry one at the same grade.
Moisture is the whole engineering problem
Corrugated gets its strength from dry fibre. Once the fibre takes on water, the board softens, the stack settles and the case can fail well below its dry performance. There are several ways to deal with it and they are not interchangeable: a coated or treated board slows absorption, a poly liner or bag keeps the liquid off the board entirely, an inner tray contains the product and its own drip, and a vented design lets melt water out rather than pooling in the base. Tell us which approach your process uses and we will quote against it. Ask on the quote which moisture resistant board and coating options are available in your lane, because availability differs between our two plants.
Sizing, stacking and the cold chain
Fillet cases are usually shallow and wide so the product lies flat and chills evenly, which makes them poor at carrying a stack unless the board is specified for it. If cases are stacked in a chiller, say how high and for how long. Then check the case footprint against the 48 x 40 in standard US pallet so nothing overhangs, because an overhanging wet case is the first thing to collapse. If the boxes go into an insulated shipper, the shipper and the case are two separate specifications and both need quoting.
Print, labelling and what you must confirm
Print holds up poorly on a surface that will be wet and cold, so keep the critical information simple, high contrast and positioned where a label will not cover it. Species, weight, catch or production information, batch codes and any market specific labelling are your responsibility to confirm with your own regulator. Suitability for direct food contact is likewise a question for your regulator and your own process validation, not something a packaging supplier can decide for you. Bring the requirement to the quote as a specification and the packaging can be built to it.
Minimum, price and lead time
The minimum is 100 boxes, priced from about $0.48 per unit at bulk volumes and confirmed on your written quote. The die, the plates, design support, US shipping and a digital proof before printing are included. Production is quoted per product in three lanes, rush (expedited production plus air freight), standard (air) and cost saver (sea), from about 7 business days, plus 2 to 5 for delivery. Two plants, West Chicago and Guangzhou.
Send the fillet size, the pack weight, the chill or freeze regime and what touches the board with your quote request, then order from the fish fillet boxes page.
