Caviar comes from sturgeon, a family of ancient fish that have existed for over 200 million years. Strictly speaking, only salt-cured eggs from sturgeon qualify as true caviar. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration holds that the word “caviar” used alone on a label should refer exclusively to sturgeon roe. Eggs from any other fish, like salmon or trout, must include the fish’s name on the label (for example, “salmon caviar”).
The Three Classic Sturgeon Species
The caviar tradition centers on three sturgeon species native to the Caspian Sea and Black Sea: Beluga, Ossetra, and Sevruga. These have historically defined the market and set the standard for flavor, texture, and price.
Beluga is the largest sturgeon species and produces the largest, most prized eggs. The roe ranges from silver to dark in color and has a buttery, delicate flavor. Beluga caviar commands the highest prices, partly because these fish can take 15 to 20 years to reach maturity. Wild Beluga sturgeon in the Caspian Sea are now classified as Critically Endangered, and imports of wild Beluga caviar into the United States have been banned since 2005.
Ossetra produces medium-sized eggs that range from golden to brown. It’s often considered the best balance of flavor and accessibility, with a nutty, slightly briny taste. Golden Ossetra eggs are especially sought after, and lighter-colored roe generally fetches higher prices.
Sevruga is the smallest of the three classic species and produces small, dark gray to black eggs. Its flavor is more intense and saltier than Beluga or Ossetra. Sevruga sturgeon mature faster, which historically made this variety more affordable and widely available.
Other Sturgeon Species Used for Caviar
Beyond the big three, several other sturgeon species contribute significantly to the global caviar supply. The Sterlet is a smaller Caspian species that produces tiny, silvery eggs with a rich flavor. Siberian sturgeon are widely farmed in Europe, particularly in Italy and France. Kaluga sturgeon, native to the Amur River basin in China and Russia, produce large eggs sometimes marketed as an alternative to Beluga. White sturgeon, found in North America’s Pacific coast rivers, are farmed in California and produce a clean, mild caviar.
There are roughly 25 species in the sturgeon family, and the international wildlife trade agreement known as CITES defines caviar broadly enough to include roe from all sturgeons and their close relatives, the paddlefish.
Where Caviar Is Produced Today
Wild caviar from the Caspian Sea once dominated the market, but overfishing and habitat loss have shifted production almost entirely to farms. China now leads global sturgeon aquaculture by a wide margin, producing over 121,000 metric tons of farmed sturgeon in 2021 and accounting for at least one third of the world’s caviar volume. Russia ranks second, followed by Italy, which produced 65 tons of caviar in 2023 and leads production within the European Union. Armenia, Iran, and Vietnam are also significant producers.
This shift to farming has been driven by conservation crisis. Sturgeon are the most threatened group of animals on the IUCN Red List. Eighty-five percent of sturgeon species are at risk of extinction, with 63 percent classified as Critically Endangered. Four species may already be extinct. Every commercially important Caspian Sea species, including Beluga, Russian, Stellate, Persian, and Ship sturgeon, has suffered severe population declines from overfishing and habitat degradation.
How Caviar Is Harvested
The traditional method of harvesting caviar involves killing the female sturgeon when her eggs are nearly mature. The fish is opened, the ovaries are removed, and the eggs are carefully separated, rinsed, salted, and packed. Because sturgeon can take a decade or more to produce their first eggs, this makes caviar production inherently slow and expensive.
Some farms now use methods marketed as “no-kill” caviar. One approach involves a surgical incision to remove the eggs, sometimes under anesthesia. Another uses hormones to trigger egg release, after which workers massage the fish’s abdomen to strip the eggs. These methods allow the same fish to be harvested multiple times over her lifetime, though both involve significant handling and stress for the animal.
Fish Roe That Isn’t True Caviar
Many products on store shelves use the word “caviar” but come from non-sturgeon fish. Under FDA labeling rules, these products must include the fish’s name before the word “caviar,” in text of the same size and prominence. More than 38 fish species are used for these alternatives worldwide.
The most common include salmon roe (large, bright orange eggs popular in Japanese cuisine), trout roe (smaller and similarly orange), lumpfish roe (tiny black or red eggs often found in grocery stores at low prices), and capelin roe (frequently used in sushi as “masago”). Cod, herring, mullet, and tuna roe are also processed and sold in various markets. These products vary widely in flavor, texture, and price, but none share the buttery richness that defines sturgeon caviar. If a label simply says “caviar” with no fish name attached, it should contain sturgeon roe.