Annual caviar production to hit 100 tons by 2025
Iran has targeted to produce 10,000 tons of sturgeon meat and 100 tons of caviar by March 2025.
There are about 13 species and four hybrids of sturgeon bred in the world and by March 2025 Iran is predicted to produce 100 tons of caviar, said Mahmoud Bahmani, the head of Agricultural Research, Education and Extension Organization (AREEO), according to IRNA.
The number of sturgeon farms in 20 provinces of Iran are about 195 units as Mazandaran, Gilan and Fars provinces ranked first to third in sturgeon fish production in the year to March 2022, Bahmani added.
It is suggested to monopolize the production of caviar using Caspian Sea water in order to preserve the brand of Iranian caviar, the official noted.
China, Italy and the US were the top three caviar exporting countries based on weight and global sales in 2021, which exported 244 tons, 234 tons, and 72 tons, respectively, Bahmani stated.
Preserving the Iranian Caviar brand and paying enough attention to Iranian local species is extremely crucial. Also, preparing and implementing a program to preserve and restore sturgeon stocks and using big data in modern aquaculture of the fish are other measures that can help the future development of aquaculture industry.