A dramatic drop

Over the last 15 years, the production of wild caviar and farmed caviar has completely reversed. In 1998, total wild caviar production was 300 tons, while farmed caviar production was 500kg. Today, wild caviar production is virtually non-existent, while farmed caviar production is around 150/180 tons.

By way of comparison, caviar production between the 18th century (when caviar began to be exported) and the 1980s fluctuated between 200 and 2,000 tons, of which 80-95% came from the Caspian Sea. The historical peak is reached in 1900, during the first «boom» of caviar. A second historical peak occurred between 1972 and 1972 with over 2000 tons of caviar produced.

However, it’s important to distinguish between wild caviar production and export. In fact, over 80% of production was destined for the Soviet domestic market! In 1984 (the last wild caviar boom), while world production of wild caviar was around 2,300 tons, no more than 300 tons were exported.. Of the 2,000 tons produced on the Russian side, no more than 100 tons were exported (that’s how much caviar the Russians consumed!). Of the 300 tons produced on the Iranian side, over 220 tons were exported.

Today, we produce 3 times less caviar than in the past. Illegal caviar from poaching accounts for around 80 tons, in addition to the 150 tons from aquaculture. The quantity produced by aquaculture is increasing by around 10% a year. It should continue to rise until it reaches the level of the wild caviar era.

But this increase requires major investment and, above all, sensible breeding. There is a risk that the production process will become too industrialized, and that there will be a race to maximise yields in view of the sums invested, which would be detrimental to the quality of the caviar (as is also the case with salmon for smoked salmon). A sort of “low cost” that would ultimately destroy the delicacy of the dish.

Did you know? Caviar is a very rare product: In 2015, annual production was just 150 tons. Production is 15 times less than that of gold, and over 200 times less than the world’s production of salmon eggs. If you are looking to buy it, you can find it in Kaviari, the online caviar shop.