A long wait for locally grown Sturgeon Caviar but Montello Gourmet Caviar lovers will soon be able to purchase CASPIAN SEA Caviar with a new shipment of EMPEROR BELUGA, OCIETRA and SEVRUGA just arrived!
EGGING ON PLANS FOR HOMEGROWN CAVIAR
AQUACULTURE
Jared Lynch - MELBOURNE HERALD SUN - BUSINESS, Friday, January 6th 2023
AGRIBUSINESS Investment banker David Williams says 2023 is all about bringing caviar to a wider audience.
“The $300 jars with all the condiments have always been off-limits to all but the very wealthy. Now it’s everywhere in bite-size and affordable dollops,” he said.
Qantas has even been serving it on some of their international flights and there are bars serving it on potato chips. “Caviar,” Mr Williams said,”is the new black.”
Beluga sturgeon, which produces the most valuable roe and is primarily found in the Caspian Sea, is critically endangered from decades of overfishing, habitat loss and the illegal trade of caviar. But in Adelaide, a public servant may have found a solution.
Professor Mehdi Doroudi, chief executive of South Australia’s Department of Primary Industries, has been working with the commonwealth for the past decade to allow the importation of sturgeon and a final decision is expected soon.
The federal government is in the final stages of completing biosecurity risk assessments and consultations. Upon their approval, Prof Doroudi could issue licences under strict conditions which would create Australia’s first homegrown caviar industry.
“It was a huge effort,” said Prof Doroudi, who worked in the Caspian Sea region and caviar industry before he migrated to Australia 27 years ago. The global caviar market presents a significant opportunity. It is worth about $US276m ($408m) and is expected to soar to $US1.88bn in the next five years, according to Market Data Forecast.
“There are lots to like about an Australian-grown caviar for the export market,” says Mr Williams. But investors will have to be patient, as it takes 10 to 12 years before you can harvest the first caviar.
