Production of sturgeon and black caviar. "milking" sturgeons, or how to get a can of legal black caviar

Black sturgeon caviar, once harvested in natural conditions, turns into a farm product. Sturgeons have been "domesticated" and bred in specialized farms, like a bird. And to get caviar, they are milked like cows.

Alexander Novikov, head of the Russian Caviar House, remembers well the times when sturgeon caviar was in abundance in stores. The average Soviet citizen could afford to buy a jar of shimmering wet grains (or, at worst, a briquette pressed caviar) - at least on holidays. Today, black caviar is rather a component of the most complex gourmet meals, completely “untied” from the budget, as well as the menu of pathos parties. Ordinary Russians do without it. And if they still want to create an "atmosphere" - they are content with the popular version. That is, the internal content of pike, painted black.

The USSR once had the status of "the world's main sturgeon producer" and was the largest supplier of sturgeon caviar to the world market. The fact is that almost the entire territory coastline The Caspian Sea to the border with Iran was part of our country, and 95% of the world's sturgeon stock was concentrated in the Caspian.

In the Soviet Union, caviar was taken seriously as a significant source of income for the treasury. A whole caviar industry was created - fish breeding plants were built, as well as special enterprises, which produced only export products. A selective product went abroad, which made it possible to create a “brand” of Russian caviar, famous throughout the world along with such symbols as matryoshka and vodka.

After perestroika in the Caspian Sea, several countries took up sturgeon fishing - Russia, Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan and Iran. During the period of shortage, poaching began to actively develop, uncontrolled extermination of sturgeon for caviar began. As a result, a stream of products made "on the knee" poured onto the world market. There was a collapse in prices, and the image of high-quality Russian caviar was destroyed. “Many Western caviar companies,” says Alexander Novikov, “then went bankrupt, because they tried to maintain quality and prices. And then the caviar became like mud, and prices collapsed.

Uncontrolled fishing, along with unfavorable environmental factors and the lack of effective actions for the reproduction of brood stocks (funding for fish hatcheries dried up after perestroika) - all this led to a 50-fold reduction in the sturgeon population in the Caspian Sea over the past 20 years. In fact, the species was on the verge of extinction. In order to leave sturgeons at least some chance of recovering their numbers, in 2007 Russia introduced a complete ban on catching them in the Caspian Sea.

Today, Iran occupies the first place in the supply of caviar to the world market. Russia has not exported this product at all for ten years. Only in 2011, the Federal Agency for Fishery allowed exports to countries European Union- in a "symbolic" volume of 150 kilograms per year. Moreover, in the 80s, export volumes reached one and a half thousand tons per month.

It is curious: today in Russia there is a widespread opinion that legal black caviar should not be on sale at all, because its circulation is completely prohibited. Not everyone knows about the existence of such a product category as sturgeon black caviar, produced in aquaculture complexes - fish farms. Products produced on sturgeon farms have never been subject to any legal prohibitions.

Black caviar is, in theory, a very interesting object of production. The commodity is scarce and expensive: with the decline in sturgeon populations, prices for caviar began to rise steadily. So, according to Alexander Novikov, from the beginning of perestroika to the present day, they have risen 20 times. Farms focused on the production of black caviar began to be created in Russia already in the mid-1990s, but so far this market is very small. According to inFOLIO Research Group, official production in 2010 was 19 tons. And according to Nina Zhadan, deputy general director of the Russian Sturgeon trading house, aquaculture enterprises produce 30-35 tons of caviar per year. For comparison: in the USSR, the production of black caviar reached 2,000 tons per year.

There are several dozen companies operating on the aquaculture caviar market in Russia. Notable players are Russian Caviar House (a farm in the Vologda Region), Astrakhan producers Raskat and Beluga, the Karmanovsky fish farm in Bashkortostan, and the CROC fish farm built in the Kaluga Region. Astrakhan companies produce about one and a half to two tons of black caviar per year, the Karmanovsky fish farm - 1,200 kg, the Kaluga sturgeon fish breeding complex will produce 4-4.5 tons of caviar this year, and the Russian Caviar House has already "salted" in 2011 10.5 tons. "Caviar producers" use different production technologies, experiment and try to accustom Russians to "artificial" black caviar, essentially creating a new market.

sparkling wine

Alexander Novikov and his partners started their "caviar" project in 1996, and at that time he had no experience in fish farming. But my instinct suggested: it is better to focus on the production of caviar, and not corny grow sturgeon or carp "for meat". “Then,” he recalls, “even without seven spans in the forehead one could understand: very soon there would be no fish or caviar left in Russia. We saw that we could become one of the first producers of aquacultured caviar.” But the businessman's entourage did not believe in the viability of the project. The cost of the product, according to calculations, turned out to be twice the price at which caviar was then sold in stores - and the market at that time was black and black from cheap poaching goods. In addition, investments here were and remain very “long”. The sturgeon does not tolerate fuss: it bears caviar slowly, at least 8 years pass before the first receipt of ripe caviar grains, and in the wild - all 14.

“I like to compare caviar with wine,” Novikov says with gusto. - To get a good drink, you need to grow the “right” grapes, and here every little thing matters: is there a vineyard on the southern or northern slope of the hill, on what soil does it grow, what is the weather like, etc. We also have our caviar in a certain sense "we grow". The critical factor is the quality of the water. But you still need to select food, temperature conditions. It's hard work."

Fish farm Novikov "Belovodie" is located in the Cherepovets district of the Vologda region. This is 450 tons of sturgeon broodstock: populations of the Lena, Siberian breeds are bred on the farm, herds of Russian sturgeon “ripen” ... According to the entrepreneur, this is a productive livestock that is already laying eggs. It is kept in "semi-free" conditions. When breeding fish, the water of the local river Suda is used, as well as the warm drains of the Cherepovetskaya GRES. Breeding fish for caviar is not the easiest process; for this, it is not enough to periodically throw food into the pool or cage and count the number of tails flashing in the water. According to Novikov, each female sturgeon is pulled out of the water 28 times a year: the fish is given an ultrasound scan, it is weighed, the stage of caviar maturity and the course of development of the fish organism as a whole are checked.

Caviar in most aquaculture farms is obtained by "milking". Fish after this procedure remains alive. The soft, caviar-filled "belly" of the female sturgeon is carefully incised; at the same time, the fish almost does not feel pain: it is already ready to give up the ripened black grains. “I think our women suffer more when they give birth,” Novikov jokes. There is also a "downhole" method of production, when the fish is destroyed when taking caviar. But it is not often practiced: after all, sturgeon can spawn in artificial conditions life every two years for at least a dozen years (that is, at least five times), and farms do not want to lose such a goose that lays golden eggs.

Alexander Novikov has invested $15 million in the caviar business over the entire period of the project's existence. Today, the businessman estimates the value of his assets at 150 million - a good result. long term project. He is not going to stop at the existing herd of 450 tons: the company will expand the range, including through beluga caviar - the most expensive on the market. This is due to the fact that the beluga grows twice as long as the sturgeon. The “laid” beluga herds on the farm are slowly “maturing,” the entrepreneur says.

Astrakhan companies have their own way. Here, they did not start with rearing "fry": most often it was possible to create or thoroughly replenish sturgeon brood stocks, using quotas (scientific, in order to reproduce the population) for catching fish in the wild. For example, this is the case with the Raskat company, which began producing black caviar in 2007. Previously, the enterprise was engaged in the reproduction of sturgeons. As a matter of fact, food caviar for Roll was a side direction, but now it is turning into a main one.

“The fertilized caviar was not in demand by the state in the volume that we had,” says Maxim Sergeev, general director of the company. “And we repurposed.” One of the advantages of Astrakhan companies is that Russian consumers are used to considering "Astrakhan" caviar the best. “This is a highly profitable business,” Sergeev admits. - The main thing is to establish a sales system. Our production has been debugged for a long time.”

Meanwhile, a number of companies in Astrakhan do not disdain to work with poaching caviar.

“More than 70% of the caviar sold by Astrakhan companies is an illegal product,” says one of the market players. - They have worked out these processes for years. Buying caviar from poachers for 10,000 rubles per kilogram and selling it for 35 or more is their entire business. This is a long-standing problem of the Astrakhans. Here he is, a sturgeon, swimming nearby in the river ... How not to take him?

In turn, the Karmanovsky fish farm (Republic of Bashkortostan) considers caviar production rather as an additional direction that has arisen naturally: the farm is engaged in the commercial production of sturgeon, while most of the resulting caviar goes to the reproduction of the herd, and the rest is processed into food caviar. “It is not interesting to deal only with caviar, purposefully,” says the head of the farm, Igor Armyaninov. In his opinion, the cost of maintaining a sturgeon broodstock is not quite comparable with the possible profit from the sale of caviar. To produce a ton of caviar, the fish farm has to "serve" 20 tons of fish. Large areas are needed - a line of one hundred cages (10 square meters each), and with the growth of the herd, it is necessary to constantly increase the capacity, build new pools and cages, and recruit people. At the same time, sturgeon females spawn irregularly - sometimes less than once every two years. And you need to be prepared for losses: the survival rate of fish is only 15% in the period from the “fry” stage to the sexually mature state. For every sturgeon and beluga there is a divine providence, the players joke: sometimes they just die. “Many caviar projects are in a pre-bankruptcy state,” Armenianinov throws up his hands. “And someone has already suffered so much and despaired that he is ready to put his flock under the knife.” It is not worth even dreaming about stability in this business. “Last summer, in the hellish heat, 20% of our producers died,” the entrepreneur complains.

Is it long, is it short?

The long-term nature of projects in the field of sturgeon breeding and caviar production is what can seriously scare investors. According to Alexander Novikov, if you start from scratch, then you will be able to break even in 10 years. But then you can count on 25-30% of the annual return on invested capital. “When we started, I thought it would be 60%,” he notes. “But our calculations turned out to be wrong.”

If you acquire already grown individuals or a completely mature herd, ready to give caviar, then the time will be reduced. But you'll have to spend a lot of money. “Those who have grown fish to the state of “maturity” sell it for five thousand rubles per kilogram, says Igor Armyaninov. - If the fish is three or four years old (such individuals belong to the category of "senior repair"), then a thousand each." Thus, in order to purchase a herd ready for the production of a ton of caviar per year, 100 million rubles will have to be paid. However, it should be taken into account that the transportation and “immersion” of sturgeon in new conditions of existence can lead to malfunctions in their physiology, Armenianinov warns: “We sometimes buy producers who seem to be “stuffed” with caviar to the eyeballs, we bring them - but for two years they have nothing at all give."

The use of recirculating water supply installations helps to bring closer the time of the first production of caviar from sturgeon and the payback of the project. For example, the Kaluga sturgeon fish breeding complex (part of the Russian Sturgeon holding), established in 2007, works according to this principle. According to Nina Zhadan, deputy general director of the Russian Sturgeon trading house, the caviar “ripening” cycle here is three to four years. Estimated payback of the complex is six years.

“Installations of a closed type are not a very promising direction,” says one of the market participants. - It is impossible to completely clean the water, so the caviar has a strong taste of compound feed and fish waste products. Yes, fish can be planted before obtaining caviar and “washed” for a long time. But it will break the whole technology.”

However, Russian Sturgeon now sells not only caviar obtained in Russia. The trading house imports up to 70% of its products from Germany. This is caviar produced by the "downhole" method. According to Nina Zhadan, it is even more in demand than "aquaculture" because it has a softer grain. And consumers are beginning to understand the differences between “traditional” and “ovulated” caviar (obtained from live fish). Zhadan is well acquainted with the habits of refined gourmets: "Many people like to be able to press the caviar to the palate with their tongue - and all the grains would burst at the same time, as if they would" click "in the mouth."

Despite the capricious nature of sturgeons, as well as long payback periods and high risks of agricultural business, investors are moving into this segment. In terms of initial investment, it is not so difficult: you can start in sturgeon breeding with an eye to obtaining several tens of tons of caviar with an amount of one hundred million rubles, and according to the players, just 40 million will be enough to simply equip a fish farm. There would be a reservoir with clean water and experienced fish farmers. These are actually the most difficult conditions to fulfill.

Alexander Novikov claims that at least five large sturgeon breeding projects have been launched in Russia to date, with an eye to the production of caviar in aquaculture complexes, and they have a chance to achieve good results. And the head of the public relations center of the Federal Agency for Fishery, Alexander Savelyev, recently made a statement that an investment boom has begun in the industry, as the playing conditions in the black caviar market are becoming more certain, and investors have realized that the state is ready to support legal business in this area. According to him, sturgeon farms were built in last years in Rostov and Novosibirsk regions, in the Krasnodar Territory and Adygea.

However, these “most definite” outlines of the rules of the game on the caviar market are being formed rather slowly. According to inFOLIO Research Group, "official" products account for less than 1% of the Russian and about 6-7% of the capital market in physical terms. It turns out that the market is almost completely black - with rare glimpses of "aquaculture". According to Alexander Novikov, illegally produced caviar accounts for 90% of total sales, or about 200 tons. “Poachers' caviar greatly “interrupts” the market for us,” says Maxim Sergeev (“Roll”). - Legally produced can cost 60-80 thousand rubles per kilogram in retail. Illegal - many times cheaper. Our customer is the one who does not know where to buy caviar from under the floor, or knows, but is afraid to do it.”

Meanwhile, in wholesale prices, the gap between poached and legal caviar is not so great. “In Astrakhan, poaching caviar costs around 20 thousand per kilogram, which is quite expensive,” they say in the Karmanovsky fish farm. Produced in "aquaculture" caviar is sold in bulk for an average of 30-35 thousand.

Products "from poachers" are becoming more expensive, as this market itself is shrinking. “Illegally caught caviar is now sold ten times less than 10 years ago: there are few fish in the Caspian,” says Maxim Sergeev. According to Alexander Novikov, poachers are crying: before, they say, they came every time with a catch, but now it’s not the same ... It seems that the participants of the “aquaculture” caviar market have room to move. There would be solvent consumer demand. Still, black caviar in Russia has long turned into a kind of "figure of speech". It is on everyone's lips, but few remember its taste.

Holiday every day

Black caviar is a holiday product, which, in fact, has only one drawback - a high price. According to inFOLIO Research Group experts, only one percent of Russians can afford to buy caviar on a regular basis, and 4% for the festive table. “We have a circle of consumers whose behavior does not depend on the situation in the economy,” says Nina Zhadan (“Russian Sturgeon”). “This is their rule of life: start every morning with black caviar.” It is clear that this is an extremely small “population” of Russians. For most, caviar is too expensive. But the problem is not only this. The younger generation of Russians is little familiar with this delicacy, and therefore does not necessarily include it in the imaginary interiors of the “beautiful life”.

The most difficult thing is selling caviar, of course, in regional markets. In the Karmanovsky fish farm, they say bluntly: it is extremely difficult to sell even a ton of black caviar per year. “Neighboring Neftekamsk, a city with a population of 120,000 people, eats 2-3 kilograms of caviar a year,” says Igor Armyaninov. - Ufa, a million-plus city, - a maximum of 50 kilograms. We sell most of the products through the online store and to Moscow supermarket chains - including working with Auchan and METRO. One Auchan can sell no more than 5-6 cans in a week.”

The Karmanovsky fish farm makes its way to the Moscow market through a special pricing policy: according to players, its products are about 30% cheaper than the market average. “If a farm is focused exclusively on caviar,” explains Armyaninov, “it has a price limit below which it cannot fall. And caviar brings us only 5-7% of the revenue, and we can sometimes afford to go for dumping in order to sell the products.” The turnover of the fish farm in the caviar direction is 20 million rubles.

Despite the seemingly very limited number of more or less successful sturgeon breeders, the black caviar market is quite competitive: according to experts, domestic demand is generally satisfied, which does not allow us to expect a large increase in sales. At the same time, theoretically, foreign producers can also enter our market: the production of caviar in aquaculture farms in the world is quite common. However, while the supply of imported caviar to Russia is rare. Although, as retailers say, there have been many offers lately - mainly from suppliers from Israel, Saudi Arabia (caviar produced in closed systems), France, Germany and even China. But the taste of imported products does not always suit sellers.

“Imported caviar is most often obtained from fish obtained by crossing several subspecies of sturgeon, and in fact cannot be either beluga, or sturgeon, or stellate sturgeon, or sterlet in pure form, - comments Oksana Tokareva, Head of Corporate Communications at METRO Cash & Carry. “Connoisseurs consider “impure” caviar to be less refined.”

The Globus Gourmet network sells only domestic caviar. “We made two shipments of caviar from France under the Petrosyan brand, but it sold very poorly,” says Larisa Sysoeva, category manager at Capital Trading Company LLC (Globus Gourmet and Zhukovka Gourmet gastronomes). “Our consumer is attached to the classic, traditional taste of Russian caviar, while imported caviar has a completely different pickling and grain structure.”

In addition, chains admit that they are sometimes afraid to deal with deliveries from abroad: it is no secret that “imported” caviar can have Russian origin. “A lot of poached caviar is exported abroad, where it is packaged and sent back to Russia,” one of the supermarket chains says.

Globus Gourmet states that sales of black caviar are growing: in the first half of 2011, compared to the same period last year, they increased by 15% in the chain as a whole. METRO Cash & Carry also points to a slight increase in caviar consumption.

It is obvious that the legal caviar market will develop, but the well-being of Russians is unlikely to ensure its rapid growth. Meanwhile, the products must be sold today, and the players are looking for "exits" to foreign markets. According to Alexander Novikov, it's not just about sales per se, but also about taking care of the image: “For any large caviar company, presence on the world market is an indispensable attribute of business. This is the specifics of the caviar business.” "Russian Caviar House" opens its representative offices in London and Zurich, as well as in United Arab Emirates, USA, Brazil. The company began trial deliveries to the markets of the USA, Japan, South Africa. The Russian Sturgeon holding is also trying to supply caviar to Canada and the Emirates. Companies have to use such "exotic" options, since access to European countries is closed to them. As Alexander Novikov explains, Russia has not signed the document regulating the production of aquaculture products and signed by the majority European countries. So import Russian caviar in the EU countries no one will allow. Given this circumstance, the statements of the Federal Agency for Fishery about the start of caviar exports to Europe look strange. Novikov believes that officials have not yet had time or did not want to change the laws that regulated the circulation of wild caviar. They need to be changed in accordance with the new realities of the market - that is, taking into account the emergence of legal aquaculture production.

Market players expect that the development of legal production of black caviar will eventually lead to a gradual decrease in prices, and the product itself will be divided into several quality categories. But this will happen not in the future of several years, but much later. So, as Alexander Savelyev (Rosrybolovstvo) said in a television interview, one should not have illusions that soon we will eat black caviar with spoons: it will remain a delicacy, and it does not matter whether it is an artificial product or a gift from nature.

Vera Kolerova

dilapidated fisheries in the Vologda region went to Alexander Novikov for debts in the mid-90s. Over 15 years, he invested more than $15 million in the business and created the largest enterprise in Russia for growing sturgeon and producing black caviar.

The commercial vein haunted Novikov back in the days of the USSR. A graduate of the Geological Prospecting Institute, he spent a lot of time in geological parties, and then became interested in restoration and restored churches almost all of the 80s. He assembled brigades under the contracts of the Russian Orthodox Church. “In those days, we were called shabashniks,” Novikov laughs, recalling the first experience of organizing a business. In 1988, he founded the Moscow Business Center cooperative, becoming a specialist in organizing offset transactions, which were so popular in the early 90s. And if not for the case, he would hardly have ended up in fish farmers.

For debts

“One of the enterprises to which we supplied galvanized steel could not pay with money and gave me a small fish farm for carp breeding in the Cherepovets district of the Vologda region. At first I thought to sell it, - says Novikov. The business was on the verge of bankruptcy. What was good there was water, the Suda River, there were no economic and industrial facilities upstream.

Novikov says about himself that “he is a meticulous person”: at first he decided to study everything on the fish topic, shoveled a mountain of literature, talked with experts - and got carried away. I decided to create a large sturgeon farm. “Carp is an uninteresting topic,” Novikov dismisses. - I immediately decided that I would not, like others, breed fish simply “for meat”. I will raise a broodstock and produce caviar.”

So in 1996, the fishery enterprise "Diana" began new life. According to Novikov, the conversion led to a complete restructuring of the economy - new pools, a workshop, and a laboratory had to be built. The only thing he tried to save was the team. The entrepreneur admits that specialists - technologists and fish farmers - knew their business, knew how to handle fish and did not have to create a team from scratch.

According to the businessman, in the mid-90s. no one raised broodstock for sturgeon caviar. A flood of poached caviar from the Caspian poured into the market. Prices have dropped. It never occurred to anyone to create such a capital-intensive business. After all, it takes 8-10 years to wait for caviar from sturgeon, and the risks, as in any form Agriculture, are extremely high. “All my friends twisted their fingers to their temples when I told them what I was doing now,” he grins. Novikov, who made his first capital back in the 80s, and then made good money during perestroika, was not chasing quick money. He was fascinated by the idea.

The entrepreneur now finds it difficult to name the amount of the initial investment. But he says that the amount of debt for which he got Diana was about $300,000. And in the first four years, he invested about $4 million in the company. own funds.

Herd on ultrasound

The basis of the future brood stock was purchased at the Konakovo sturgeon plant. In the form of fertilized eggs. So they grew from eggs. Already small adult herds were bought from the bent Soviet enterprises. The livestock of "young animals" was constantly increased, some were sold simply as a commodity. For the first 10 years, the company lived by selling fish, annually selling about 300 tons of sturgeon. The company's turnover at this stage did not exceed $3 million.

Novikov’s company began to produce and sell sturgeon caviar only in 2006. Then the Russian Caviar House brand and the group of companies of the same name appeared, uniting three legal entities - Diana Fishery Company (RTF), Belovodie LLC (trading and wholesale transactions) and "Russian Caviar House" (retail trade in caviar through an online store).

A processing workshop was built on the territory of Diana, in the construction of which Novikov invested, according to him, about $2 million.

Now the broodstock has reached 450 tons (one individual weighs 10-12 kg on average), and there will be no trouble with such a farm. Novikov says that each fish is pulled out and examined about 20 times during the year. The fish is familiar with the equipment for ultrasound diagnostics firsthand. “We had to learn what no one in Russia knew how to do then, to keep a herd,” says Novikov. “With the help of ultrasound, the sex was determined, and the females were regularly examined to understand how they develop.”

You will be surprised, but the fish, it turns out, can be milked! Novikov's company uses two technologies for obtaining caviar - intravital (caviar at the fifth stage of maturation is obtained by milking) and slaughter (in this way caviar is obtained at the fourth stage of maturation). Downhole caviar is more fatty, high-calorie and costs 40-45% more. “But downhole technology we get no more than 15% of caviar,” Novikov emphasizes. “And we use only weak, slowly growing fish for this, which it makes no sense to pull for years, endlessly increasing the herd.”

For the first time, the fish gives eggs in the amount of approximately 10% of its own weight. Every year the volume of caviar increases and can reach 20% of the weight. “In nature, fish spawn every 4-6 years. In our conditions, once every two years,” says the entrepreneur.

Novikov finds it difficult to say how many years a sturgeon can spawn. There are individuals in their herd that have been spawning for more than 20 years. Their scaly sides are marked with scars from attempts to humanely obtain caviar back in the USSR - it was a kind of fish caesarean section, from which, according to Novikov, up to half of the fish died.

Taste and color

“Today, 10 aquaculture enterprises produce black caviar in Russia,” says Oleg Klepikov, CEO of inFolio Research Group. - In total, about 50 farms grow sturgeon. The largest of them, according to the data for the first half of 2010, are the Diana RTF (Belovodie, Vologda region) - 7.5 tons; fish breeding company "Beluga" (Astrakhan) - 2 tons; "Roll" (Astrakhan) - 1.2 tons; Karmanovsky fish farm (Bashkiria) - 900 kg; Kaluga sturgeon fish breeding complex (Kaluga region) - 200 kg.

On average, 1 kg of sturgeon caviar from Novikov costs 30,000 rubles. “But black caviar has always been a delicacy,” he emphasizes. - In 2010, we sold 10.5 tons of caviar. 16 tons were sold on the legal caviar market, and in total our market consumes more than 200 tons! The state only declares the fight against poachers.”

The turnover of Russian Caviar House in 2010 amounted to $18 million, of which caviar accounts for about $14.5 million. The company sells about $200,000 worth of caviar every month through the online store.

According to the entrepreneur, a little more than 60% of the turnover is spent on the operational activities of the company, he lets everything else for development without withdrawing profits. Novikov plans to increase the broodstock until 2020. By that time, it will amount to 1200 tons. He estimates the profitability of the business at 30-35%.

Outside the economy

“The main difficulty faced by producers of official black caviar is an erroneous opinion, incorrectly formed by the media, that black caviar is prohibited for sale in Russia,” explains Ekaterina Antoshkina, Head of Marketing and PR at Russian Sturgeon Trade House. “In fact, caviar obtained from fish grown in our own fish farms has never been banned or regulated by law.” Trading House "Russian Sturgeon" began to work in 2008 - caviar is mined at three of its own complexes in Russia and Germany. The company also uses two technologies for caviar production - downhole and live.

Another barrier to the development of companies producing official black caviar is poaching, says Antoshkina. “According to unofficial sources, about 16 tons of black caviar are imported to Moscow every month, which is subsequently sold throughout the country. The turnover of official companies is about 12 tons per year, ”Antoshkina cites such estimates.

“The potential for the development of black caviar production is beyond the economic plane, but depends entirely on the political will of the state,” notes Klepikov from inFolio Research Group. - In order to reverse the situation with sturgeons, it is necessary to take extraordinary measures to combat poaching and at least double the capacity for the reproduction of sturgeons. Only effective work in these areas can ensure a significant increase in the production of black caviar even on the basis of existing farms, and most importantly, increase the investment attractiveness of the industry.”

The story of the delicacy we lost

Russia is rapidly losing its position in the sturgeon caviar market. Today, it is more profitable to produce a delicacy in China, Europe or Latin America. Why this is happening was investigated by journalist Alexander Kolesnikov, who published this material on the News.ru portal.

Sturgeons sailed from Russia to China

The USSR for many years was considered the world's "caviar power". The annual production of black caviar sometimes reached 2.5 thousand tons, occupying almost 90% of the world market. However, in the last 20 years, the output of the delicacy in the Russian Federation has decreased. Since the 90s, the number of sturgeons in the Russian sector of the Caspian Sea has decreased by 38 times, and on the Volga - by 15. Gradually, the country lost its position in the world market and began to import products from other countries.

Experts of the All-Russian Association of Fishery Enterprises, Entrepreneurs and Exporters (VARPE) attribute the drop in volumes to total poaching at the end of the last century.

But almost completely sturgeons were exterminated during the mass auctions of 2000-2003. Short-term contracts were concluded with enterprises, and new players were not interested in preserving the population. Poaching, the extreme low release of juveniles into their natural habitat, as well as the growing production of hydrocarbons on the Caspian shelf, have led to disastrous results.

The ban on the extraction of black caviar in natural reservoirs in 2015 became a necessary measure. However, the recovery of the industry is still very far away. According to the Federal Agency for Fishery, last year the country received only 32 tons of sturgeon caviar. WARPE reports 43.9 tons, of which less than 8% (7.8 tons) was exported.

Today, the stocks of these fish species are supported only by artificial reproduction. Specialists grow the so-called broodstock. Depending on the type of sturgeon, the period of puberty of an individual begins at the age of seven. In the case of the "slaughter" method of obtaining caviar, the fish stops its life cycle, and in the case of the "milk" method, the broodstock is preserved. Sturgeon breeds are long-lived, therefore, after spawning, they can exist for several decades, and in the case of the beluga, up to 100 years.

Already in the 1990s-2000s planting material from Russia was exported to Latin America, Europe and China. Abroad, they began to grow sturgeons from fry to mature fish and achieved success. In particular, the producers of the Celestial Empire carried out a large-scale work on hybridization and adaptation of this family to their conditions and became the main supplier of the delicacy in the world.

Business continues to "milk" sturgeons

News.ru was able to contact various Russian companies that deal with sturgeon in Uruguay using the "downhole" method.

Industry representatives told News.ru that almost 99% of domestic caviar is obtained by the intravital method, which has a number of disadvantages.

First, the fish is given a hormonal injection to induce "delivery" and compact the grain. Such a product is considered immature. Secondly, warm water is used to wash the grains, otherwise the mucus cannot be washed off and the grain cannot be strengthened, which leads to mini-pasteurization and loss of useful properties. Thirdly, with each subsequent "milking" caviar becomes more and more "empty" - less useful substances and vitamins.

The method was invented by Russian specialists for the purpose of fertilization, and the grain that was rejected went on sale and was a by-product.

"Milking" is a method of reproduction, not for production. Therefore, what domestic farms offer is not black caviar in its traditional sense, Real Service reported.

Meanwhile, VARPE President German Zverev categorically disagrees with this statement: “The technology for the production of “downhole” caviar is more expensive, this type of product is considered to be of higher quality, but this does not mean that “milk” caviar is unsafe or less “environmentally friendly”. These indicators depend on the state of health of the fish itself, which is primarily affected by the conditions of its cultivation and nutrition.

In fact, representatives of the industry switched to cooperation with the farms of Uruguay due to the poor quality of caviar in Russia. The commercial director of the Caviar Russia project, Anton Strizhakov, also previously told News.ru about negative trends in the industry. Among the reasons, the expert singled out low competition in the domestic market, lack of state support, and the dominance of Chinese imports.

Domestic producers, instead of increasing the number of sturgeons, have to use the "milking" method, as it is faster and less costly. It should be noted that business in the Russian Federation even received various economic preferences and state subsidies for this.

There are also ways to mislead customers in the industry. Alexey Alekseenko, assistant to the head of the Rosselkhoznadzor, told News.ru about them: “I care why Russian companies allow you to cover Chinese caviar with your certificates. It's profitable. Chinese costs there only $ 8-10 per 1 kg. And when it is imported here and sold as domestic, the price is already different - 30-34 thousand rubles. But you will not see on the price tags that it is Chinese. And those people who remember the taste of the real one feel the difference.”

Climatic conditions in China, Latin America and Southern Europe are favorable for sturgeon breeding, while in the Russian Federation most of the largest fish breeding complexes are located in a rather cool place for them. As a result, high costs and inability to compete with China.

Imported caviar is most often produced by the traditional downhole method. According to experts, abroad they know and take into account the shortcomings of the "milk" method. In addition, it is banned in many countries around the world.

Due to the fact that Russian companies obtain caviar by this method, there are practically no mature big fish under slaughter.

On the market you can buy live or chilled sturgeon, but weighing no more than 2-4 kg. As a rule, these are males, since they do not need to be "milked".

Thus, there are no good raw materials for shops involved in smoking and salting (losses during heat treatment reach 40%). They need carcasses from 5-6 kg. Abroad, males weighing 8-12 kg and even larger females are used for these purposes. There is no such fish on an industrial scale in Russia, so one can observe a shortage of sturgeon and high prices for such a product.

In the process of obtaining and processing, our sturgeon caviar is sorted according to organoleptic characteristics (color, size, taste, grain elasticity), as well as according to the method of preparation. The salt content in granular caviar is the same, but in different types and varieties it is felt differently. Black caviar goes on sale under the following trademarks:

Pasteurized granular caviar

In 2018, we improved the technology for the production of the “Standard” variety, as a result of which the differences between the varieties became almost indistinguishable, and the separation of pasteurized sturgeon caviar into varieties became impractical.

Unpasteurized granular caviar

Caviar variety / Characteristics

Grain size	medium (1.5–2 mm)	medium and large (2-3 mm)	medium and large (2-3 mm)
grain color	dark gray to black	gray to brownish	dark gray to brownish
The taste of caviar	tender caviar, slightly salted		full-bodied, with a slight bitterness
Appearance	shiny, with a translucent shell, slightly moist		silky texture, delicate translucent sheath

Varieties "Classic", "Premier" and "Imperial" differ from each other in the age and size of the fish from which the caviar was obtained. A special difference between the Imperial variety is that only caviar from fish over 15 years old is used for its preparation.

For its manufacture, the brine method is used (salting in brine) at a temperature of 40 ° C, after which the caviar is pressed into a homogeneous mass. Pressed caviar is made on pure salt, the content of which is not more than 5%. It is not divided into varieties, however, our assortment includes two types of pressed caviar.

Astrakhanka	Pressed sausage

pasteurized	unpasteurized

The consistency of pressed caviar in the sausage casing is firmer than that of Astrakhanka pressed caviar.

CAVIAR BY TYPE OF FISH GROWN IN OUR AQUACULTURE

Caviar differs not only in the methods of preparation and extraction, but also in the types of fish.

Type of fish / Characteristics	Grain size	grain color	Taste
Sturgeon	medium and large (1.5-3 mm)	gray to dark bronze or black	delicate caviar, with characteristic notes of nuts and cream
stellate sturgeon	medium (1.5 - 2 mm)	brownish to black	pronounced, with hints of nuts and cream
Bester	medium and large (2-3 mm)	from silver gray to anthracite shades	bright caviar, oily, close to the taste of beluga caviar
Sterlet	small (1-1.5 mm)	light brown to dark gray	subtle, with "marine" notes

Beluga caviar is considered to be the most valuable and best caviar. Beluga - amazing fish, capable of reaching enormous sizes and living up to the age of 100 years. Unfortunately, in modern conditions this is almost impossible, and it is this species that is now the least common, and its caviar is the rarest and most expensive.
Now in aquaculture farms, both purebred sturgeons (Russian sturgeon, Siberian sturgeon) and their hybrids are bred: Russian-Lena sturgeon, stellate sturgeon with sterlet, Amur sturgeon and Kaluga. Caviar from "pure" sturgeon breeds is considered more valuable and tasty. The second factor is age: the older the fish, the better (and larger) the caviar from it. For example, in our assortment such caviar is produced under the brand name "Imperial". As for the type of caviar, this is rather a matter of taste, since many find the taste of the smallest and least valuable sterlet caviar the most attractive.

Products under the Russian Caviar House brand name are real black caviar from the leader of the caviar market in Russia. Currently, the breeding of sturgeon in order to obtain caviar has become widespread. However, the vast majority of fish farms use closed-cycle reservoirs, which does not have the best effect on the taste of caviar. Our sturgeon breeding farm is located on the Suda River, in an ecologically favorable region of the Vologda Oblast, the fish is kept in cages in running water, in conditions as close to natural as possible. Therefore, the taste of our black caviar is pure, without discrediting shades or aftertastes. Thanks to the use of life-time caviar production technology, our broodstock is the oldest in Russia, some individuals are over 15 years old, and the older the fish, the tastier and more valuable its caviar.
At the production enterprise "RTF Diana", which is part of the Group of Companies, a food safety management system (FSMS) has been implemented and is successfully operating in accordance with the requirements of ISO 22000, the FSSC 22000 certification scheme, a recognized organization - the Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI). Annually by an independent inspector Russian branch DQS GmbH is being audited. Therefore, our black caviar is a guaranteed environmentally friendly and safe product.
One of our key advantages is the consistently high quality of products for many years, which is annually confirmed by diplomas and awards.
Red caviar under our brand is caviar, the place of extraction and harvesting of which is Kamchatka and Sakhalin. Red caviar is packaged at our production facility in Moscow, after mandatory preliminary selection for organoleptic parameters and laboratory testing for food safety.

IN this moment a kilogram of black caviar can be bought in Moscow and St. Petersburg at a price of 40,000 to 90,000 rubles.
The price for legal sturgeon caviar starts from 45,000 rubles per 1 kilogram, and such a cost is relevant only for large packaging (500 - 1,000 g). A small 100-gram jar will cost at least 5,000 rubles, that is, already 50,000 rubles per 1 kg (if you do not take into account special offers and promotions of suppliers). The price of black sturgeon caviar of the highest category, obtained from individuals of at least 15 years of age, will already be from 70,000 rubles per 1 kg.
The cost of black caviar also depends on the type of caviar: sterlet caviar is cheaper than sturgeon caviar, and beluga caviar - the most valuable and rare today - will cost one and a half to two times more than classic sturgeon caviar.

There are two main components that determine the high cost of real (natural) black caviar.
1. This is a valuable food product with unique taste qualities, which has no analogues.
2. This is a rather rare product, the production of which now involves large investments.
Indeed, the current cost of the delicacy is bewildering, some even accuse manufacturers of artificially inflating prices. In fact, the explanation for the current situation is simple: as long as a person was getting caviar from wildlife, and the volumes of natural resources seemed inexhaustible, the cost of black caviar included, in fact, only the costs of catching fish, salting, packaging caviar and its transportation. Now the fish have to be grown, which is associated with huge costs. Moreover, the sturgeon is extremely difficult to breed and keep. To obtain caviar, a female sturgeon must reach sexual maturity, which is at least 6–9 years old. All this time, it is necessary to bear the risks of not only her death or illness, but also the costs of feeding and maintaining. However, despite the high price, the result is worth it: we can eat caviar of the highest quality and without harm to the environment.

Given the effect of the moratorium on the extraction of caviar from the wild, which has been in force since 2007, it does not matter where the caviar aquaculture farm is located. The aquaculture of the Russian Caviar House is located in an ecologically clean area without industrial enterprises, which has the best effect on product quality.
The stereotype has historically taken root that “real” black caviar is only “wild” and only Astrakhan. Once upon a time it was. But today the situation has changed, and the Astrakhan region holds the sad first place in terms of the number of poached caviar sold through aquaculture farms. More than 70% of such products are of poaching origin: many Astrakhan companies do not hesitate to buy caviar from poachers and pass it off as produced under their own brand.
In addition, the ecological situation in the Caspian Sea is also deplorable, which calls into question the beneficial properties of Astrakhan caviar.

Some argue that in Russia caviar has long been “not the same”, but imported caviar from France, Iran, Canada and other countries is much tastier. We hasten to upset the "experts": most often foreign manufacturers there is no experience in the production of this product, they do not know how many factors affect the taste of caviar when growing fish ... What can we say about the quality of such caviar, if foreign producers have difficulties already at the stage of creation base element aquaculture – rearing of broodstock, i.e. sturgeon females?
It should also be noted that among the imported black caviar, Chinese caviar is beginning to occupy an increasing share. Considering the level of pollution of China's rivers and the general unfavorable environmental situation, as well as the lack of state standards quality for the production of black caviar, you should be careful when buying such products.

The most common and safest preservative is LIV-1. It is a mixture of salt-containing additives - sorbic and ascorbic acids. It is this new generation preservative that the Russian Caviar House company uses in the production of its unpasteurized black caviar.
Salt has the main preservative property. But in order for the caviar to be lightly salted, the amount of salt should be minimal. Therefore, manufacturers use soft, gentle, but no less effective approved food additives.
In counterfeit goods, for example, in order to mask the unpleasant taste and smell of a spoiled product, substances hazardous to human health that are prohibited for use in the food industry, such as sodium tetraborate (borax), can be added.

There are two traditions of serving black caviar - Russian and European. In Europe, caviar is served in special caviar bowls - large containers with ice - where a small glass or crystal vase with caviar is placed. In Russia, a few minutes before serving, caviar is laid out in glass, porcelain, silver containers, but no ice is added. It so happened historically that in Russia black caviar was always served fresh, and it took a long time to bring it to Europe. In the process of transportation, caviar lost its freshness and ended up on the table of Europeans with various flavors, which had to be masked with ice and lemon, which beat off the “fishy” smell. Therefore, the statement that caviar should be served on ice is erroneous. On the contrary, the caviar should warm up a little at room temperature - only then will it reveal its true taste to you.
What drinks go well with black caviar?
Black caviar is a traditional appetizer for the most traditional Russian drink - vodka. True connoisseurs simply bite vodka with caviar, scooping it up with a caviar spoon. famous singer F. I. Chaliapin first ate caviar, and only then drank a glass of vodka. “They don’t eat caviar, they drink it with vodka,” he used to say. Slightly salty fatty taste of caviar is only emphasized by a sip of "fire water".
Although the Russian traditions of eating black caviar reached other countries, of course, they could not but undergo changes. So, another classic combination was born in France - black caviar and champagne. It is good sparkling wine that goes well with the contrasting salty taste of caviar. It must be remembered that we are talking only about the best, elite varieties of classic French luxury class cuvee champagne.

Pasteurized caviar is caviar that has undergone heat treatment in autoclaves or water baths. It differs from the "live" granular one in a tighter grain and a more neutral taste. Preservatives are not added to it, because. pasteurization replaces preservation.
The main purpose of pasteurization is to increase the shelf life of the product. Unlike unpasteurized caviar, pasteurized caviar can be stored for up to 24 months, retaining its beneficial and nutritious properties. This allows you to transport caviar even to the most remote regions without worrying about the safety of the product quality.
One of the disadvantages of a pasteurized product is that such caviar may lose some of its taste. Why is this happening? During pasteurization, there is a slight compaction of the shells of eggs and thickening of the yolk mass inside the eggs, the caviar becomes drier and more crumbly, its taste changes slightly. It becomes more neutral, which is very to the taste of people who do not really like seafood with a pronounced "fishy" flavor.
Pasteurized granular caviar is made in accordance with GOST 6052-2004 from granular black caviar of the highest grade. After removing excess moisture, salt is added to the caviar - from 3 to 5% of the total caviar weight. Then the caviar is packaged in glass or metal jars, which are closed with tin lids and pasteurized - they are heated in autoclaves or water baths at a temperature of 60-65 ° C. Unlike unpasteurized caviar, pasteurized caviar can be stored even at room temperature.

Black caviar is a storehouse of useful vitamins and minerals that a person needs for normal life. We decided to use a concise and descriptive picture to answer this question:

The export of caviar is regulated by the Federal Customs Service of the Russian Federation as follows:
It is allowed to export no more than 250 grams of black sturgeon caviar per person.
Other seafood (including red caviar) - no more than 5 kg per person.
We recommend that you take caviar and seafood in your checked baggage to prevent them from being confiscated by airport security (such products may not be allowed in carry-on baggage).
The presence of documents confirming the origin of products is desirable, but not mandatory from the point of view of legislation.
Please note that in many countries the allowed amount of imported delicacies is regulated, so learn more about the rules for importing caviar to the country where you are traveling.

First, it is worth noting that fakes can be of two types:
1) imitation of black caviar (for example, dyed pike caviar or alginic caviar from algae) - that is, not sturgeon caviar, but similar in appearance and passed off as it;
2) poaching or Chinese caviar, under the guise of caviar from well-known manufacturers.
In the first case, the price (most likely suspiciously low), color and appearance, as well as the composition (if it is indicated honestly).
In the second case, it is not easy to be sure. Even if the seller shows you the documents for the products, they will not be easy for an inexperienced buyer to understand.
Therefore, the most reliable way to protect yourself from buying fake caviar or counterfeit products is to buy black caviar directly from the manufacturer or its official representatives.

The most correct thing would be not to store caviar at all, but to eat it as soon as possible. But if the caviar was bought for the holiday, then we recommend putting the jar on the topmost shelf of the refrigerator closer to the back wall. Since the household refrigerator does not provide the optimal temperature regime for storing caviar (-2-4 ° С), you can get as close as possible to the desired temperature regime. However, in no case do not freeze the caviar and do not store it in the freezer, as this will greatly spoil both the appearance of the caviar and its taste.
When closed and at the correct storage temperature, caviar is able to maintain freshness throughout the entire shelf life. If the package has already been opened, the product should be consumed within 3 days.

It is worth buying caviar only from official manufacturers. As a rule, such companies own their own sturgeon breeding enterprises, where sturgeon are grown.
Require official documents for purchased products - first of all, a CITES certificate certifying that caviar is obtained from fish grown in aquaculture.
Buy caviar in the right packaging - a tin or glass jar. No wonder sturgeon caviar is called "black gold" - like a noble metal, its weight is measured in grams and ounces, which is indicated on the packaging. There can be no loose legal black caviar!
Take a closer look at the contents of the package (if we are talking about a glass jar). Fake caviar has eggs - like a selection, strictly of the same color, one size and one shape. For real caviar, a slight deviation in the size and color of the eggs is permissible, and inside the caviar there must be a noticeable core - the so-called "eye".
The packaging must be airtight - when you open the glass jar, you should hear a light pop, this is a sign that the jar was closed under vacuum.
In no case do not buy caviar in the subway, at train stations, warehouses, streets, in other deserted places - the official manufacturer always has a point of sale, designed in accordance with all the rules.

Children under 3 years of age are not recommended to give black caviar due to the still unformed gastrointestinal tract. Allergic reactions are also possible - before including black caviar in the baby's diet, you should consult with a pediatrician. However, after three years and in the absence of allergic reactions, black caviar will be very useful for the child as a source of numerous nutrients.

The difference can be explained in one word "security", both in the legal and in the consumer sense of the word.
First of all, we draw your attention to the fact that since 2013 Russia introduced criminal liability not only for the smuggling of sturgeon and black caviar, but also for the purchase of poached caviar.
Poacher's caviar is caviar obtained from wild fish caught illegally. In order to catch fish and not be caught themselves, poachers often act like this: they put nets in the river and check them every few days. Thus, often a fish suffocated in gear can lie in the water for a long time, decomposition processes begin in it, which, of course, affects both the taste of caviar and its safety for health.
Legal caviar is taken only from live fish and is immediately processed. A cool temperature is maintained in the caviar shop - this is a strict technological requirement. Specialists working with caviar do not take off their masks and gloves at all stages of caviar processing, thus absolutely eliminating the contact of any bacteria with the product. Only sterile inventory, equipment and containers are used, and only specially prepared, clean filtered water without pathogenic microorganisms is used for washing raw caviar and inventory.
Poacher's caviar is literally done "on the knee", hastily, with gross violations sanitary norms. It is processed in any weather - accordingly, in the heat, pathogenic bacteria will multiply in the caviar. Inventory and containers are washed with water from the nearest reservoir (we all know about ecological state reservoirs in our country, where industrial and household waste etc.). In the manufacture of caviar, poachers add preservatives and additives that are prohibited for use, which are designed to drown out the unpleasant taste and smell of an already spoiled product.
Legal caviar is produced in compliance with all technological and sanitary conditions, poaching caviar - with their grossest violation. Legal caviar is obtained from live fish, poaching - more often from the deceased. The official manufacturer uses safe permitted preservatives, the poacher - hazardous to human health, not used in the food industry.
Poachers incur minimal costs, do not pay taxes and do not give any guarantees. Of course, their product is cheaper. But not enough to risk your health for a delicacy. of dubious quality. We encourage everyone to consume responsibly and resist poaching.
By purchasing caviar from an official manufacturer, the consumer receives a real, tasty, healthy, environmentally friendly and safe product, produced in compliance with all necessary standards and legally allowed for sale.

Caviar is a sexual product of female fish, i.e. fry emerge from the eggs. Caviar contains all the necessary trace elements for the emergence of a new life. That is why any fish caviar is considered useful.
If we talk exclusively about the color of caviar, and what is meant by the phrase "black caviar", then the answers will be slightly different. After all, what we mean by black caviar as an expensive product, or as some say - by real black caviar, does not always have black grain. So, valuable black caviar in sturgeon fish: beluga, sturgeon, sturgeon sturgeon. Moreover, their caviar has various shades, from light gray to dark brown and black. Also, caviar of thorn and paddlefish is also referred to as black caviar.
Black caviar in bowfin and halibut fish, it also has useful properties, but on palatability inferior to sturgeon caviar.
Red caviar is called caviar obtained from salmon fish (pink salmon, chum salmon, sockeye salmon, chinook salmon, coho salmon, trout).

American photographer and journalist Carl Mydans, who was one of the first five photojournalists of the famous LIFE magazine, went to the USSR at the end of 1959. Midans spent the winter in Moscow, where he took a series of stunning pictures from and her. And in April 1960, he went to Astrakhan, where he captured the process of catching sturgeon and extracting black caviar in the USSR.

In 1960, when Karl Midans got to one of the largest fish factories in the USSR - the Astrakhan fish cannery and refrigeration plant, 93% of the total production of sturgeon and beluga caviar fell on Soviet Union. Then the granular sturgeon caviar produced in the USSR was rightfully considered the best in the world, and the phrase "black caviar" was one of the main associations with our country.

Fishermen, including women, catch sturgeon with a net in the Volga Delta. To preserve the sturgeon population, its catch was allowed only two months a year.

In the mid-1950s, the construction of power plants and numerous hydroelectric facilities and locks began on the Caspian rivers, which "cut off" sturgeon from their spawning grounds in fresh water. Poaching was the second negative factor that drastically affected the situation with sturgeons. To restore the sturgeon population in 1959, the government began to invest in the construction of hatcheries in former spawning grounds.

By the mid-1960s, the sturgeon population had stabilized. And the Astrakhan fish factory had no choice but to establish the fastest and most efficient production of black caviar.

Many anglers came from neighboring Kazakhstan. According to Midans, Russian and Kazakh fishermen worked well and harmoniously together, as one team.

Caviar is taken out of a still living fish, so the fishermen jam it with clubs while standing in the water.

Given the value and fragility of caviar, Midans was simply amazed by the cruel treatment of the fish that produced it by the fishermen. “When boats with fish swimming in them arrived at the plant, men in rubber suits, usually two at a time, climbed into the boats and, standing waist-deep in water, grabbed the floundering fish by the head, lifted it above the water and jammed it with wooden clubs. The blows seem deadly, but already inside, most of the fish are still sliding on the concrete floor and seem to be quite alive, ”the photographer recorded his observations.

In Soviet times, most of the caviar was obtained by slaughtering fish. Today, when sturgeons are grown at aquaculture enterprises, they try to use the slaughter to a minimum - this is simply unprofitable.

A factory worker rips open the belly of a sturgeon to extract caviar. It is known in advance whether there is caviar in the fish. Fish without caviar is immediately sent for further processing.

Gutted fish, already without caviar, is waiting for shipment to the smoking, freezing or conservation workshop.

Factory workers clean freshly caught sturgeon.

The caviar is sieved before being put into jars.

The most valuable caviar is granular canned beluga and sturgeon caviar. Grained caviar is called, consisting of whole, undeformed grains, easily separated from one another. Canned caviar, in turn, is made from the grain of the High Quality, sorted by size and color.

Packaging of caviar in glass jars for export.

The demonstration of the plant to the American photojournalist, of course, worked to the installation of the Soviet government to present the country as a worthy competitor in the world economic arena. Midans' escorts, experts in propaganda tourism, knew exactly how to impress a Western visitor. Midas saw rows of neatly dressed women weighing and packing caviar, and tables filled with endless jars of one of the most expensive foods in the world.

Weighing caviar and packaging in jars.

Caviar was packaged in cans capacity up to 2 kg with sliding lid. Placing caviar in jars is a very responsible operation, on which the preservation of the quality of caviar during transportation and storage depends. The jars were necessarily filled with excess and without the formation of voids in them, so that there would be no air left and mold would not appear, worsening the taste and smell of caviar. The surface of the caviar, pressed by the lid, should have been at least 1 cm above the edge of the case.

The final destination of the caviar is a festive table meant to demonstrate that a socialist economy can be not only functional, but also luxurious. IN Soviet times black caviar, although it was also expensive, more or less regularly appeared on the tables of even ordinary Soviet engineers.

After the collapse of the USSR, the caviar industry began to fall apart, and poaching flourished. In 2005, the commercial catch of sturgeon in the Volga-Caspian basin was completely prohibited, with the exception of a small catch for scientific purposes. Now only caviar obtained from fish grown on specially built sturgeon farms is considered legal.