Our Stories

Illex squid - Argentina

The alligator that led us to the squid

What do a Louisiana alligator farmer, the Boston Seafood Show and Kaoshiung, Taiwan have in common? At the Boston Seafood Show in the 1980s, a chance meeting with an Alligator farmer based in Louisiana put us in touch with an Illex squid distributing family located in Kaoshiung, Taiwan.

Specializing in the Argentine Illex and the Peruvian-Chilean Gigas, we’re able to access some of the highest quality large squid species through our South American supplier. Sea-frozen for optimal freshness, they’re shipped back to Kaoshiung, Taiwan, where they’re re-packed and exported worldwide. The Alligator farmer has since retired, but our 20-year ties with the squid producers remains strong to this day.

Shrimp - India

A passage to India via shrimp

For years, Thailand has been a leading provider of quality shrimp. But India has recently entered the shrimp market with intriguing products that compete with the best the world has to offer. In recent decades, aquaculture has been booming in the southeastern region of Andhra Pradesh. With this thriving industry, India has now surpassed Thailand in global production.

Impressed with the Indian shrimp products we’d seen, we travelled south to secure a dedicated supplier of our own. Because ensuring quality is our number one business, we require a third party on-site inspector. Currently, we use the same two facilities for all of our imports into Canada to control consistency, so that when you order shrimp from Voyageur you’re assured the quality you expect.

Loligo squid - China

From spring rolls to tzatziki

Who knew that a spring roll wrapper supplier would lead us to the fried calamari you enjoy at Greek restaurants? Today, Canadian chefs are so rich with seafood options from around the world, it’s hard to imagine a time when those options were limited. Rewind to the 1990s. China was a source for world-class products, but difficulty bridging cultural differences made importing a challenge.

To help us navigate our way through the various suppliers, we reached out to a contact who led us to a distributor of spring roll wrappers. Yes, spring rolls. From there, we were introduced to our Loligo squid producer in Shantou, a connection that’s lasted to this day. Prized for its tenderness uncommon in most squid, it’s ideal for your favourite calamari creations.

Bacon-Wrapped Scallops - Japan

East meets west, bacon meets scallops

When we were seeking a facility that could process our non-kosher items, we had no idea a partnership would connect us with prized Japanese scallops from Hokkaido Island. Through a sister company of the facility we found in Richmond, B.C., we were connected with a global scallop producer located in Asia – and our bacon-wrapped scallops were born.

Finished and hand-rolled locally, they’re a genuine product of Canada made from imported and domestic ingredients. Half farm-raised Japanese scallops, half local Canadian bacon, they’re a delicious international fusion born out of a mutually beneficial homegrown partnership.

Seeking the world’s best seafood