Caspian Caviar

Connoisseurs can rejoice and relax again. The United Nations has
decided to lift the ban on Caspian caviar that was enforced in 2006.
Apparently after 2005, the embargo was put in place as the fish
where caviar comes from, the sturgeon, was disappearing rapidly in
the Caspian Sea due to overfishing. This was an economic blow to
the 5 nations bordering the Caspian Sea: Iran, Russia, Turkmenistan,
Kazakhstan, and Azerbaijan. But while the stocks of sturgeon are
still falling, the U.N. has decided to let the 5 nations sell 96 tons of
caviar in 2007. (15% lower than in 2005). 90% of the world's caviar
comes from the Caspian sea. With the embargo last year, caviar
producers from America and Europe had prospered; the lifting of
the ban doesn't bode well for such producers. Not that some caviar
producers from the 5 Caspian countries didn't get around the ban.
According to the BBC, the illegal trade in caviar is extremely
profitable; a kilogram (around 2 pounds) can run about $9,500.
WELL, that is an awful lot of money for salty fish eggs!