Caviar capital Astrakhan dies

I recommend to read this sad story about the fading away of many coastal regions around the Caspian Sea.

After the sturgeons are gone, the humans will too…Fair enough?

Caviar art scandal

Albeit it might not be considered actually as ‘fresh news’, it fits seemingly well in my blog about caviar and for caviarists.

Back in 2005 the Tretyakov Gallery in Moscow decided to remove Alexander Kosolapov’s “Icon Caviar” from its exhibition about Russian Pop Art after receiving heavy criticism and even threats from local Orthodox church.

Here’s the picture of that infamous piece of art:

If interested, I recommend you read the following article about that art scandal that shaked Russians art-community some years back: BBC News

All Russians eat caviar?

Of course not! Not only in the present face of sturgeon getting extinct, caviar has become quite scarce. Even back in the (glory?) days of the Tsars and more recently of the KGB, caviar was always accessible to the members of certain societal circles. Or ‘classes’, to stay in line with Marx. But of course, the current meteoric fall of the wild sturgeon populations in the Caspian Sea region doesn’t help fighting the ‘classy tradition’ of caviar and turning it into a general commodity.

According to a poll, only 17% of the Russians have bought and/or eaten caviar in the last 2 years…

Read original article.

How much banning is needed?

Last week I posted something about a rumour, that the Russians want to convince their Caspian Sea border states members to pass a 10-year fishing ban in order to restore the tiny sturgeon wild-stocks in the region.

Now, after I cheered to that for a while as a gone-mad-greenpeace-disciple, I had to make one step back and reflect about what actually hangs in the air. Let’s be clear, even if the direction might be right, a 10-year fishing ban doesn’t bring these critically endangered sturgeons to their well-deserved bright future. Because of their slow maturation – wild sturgeons lay their eggs at the age of  aprox. 15 years old (depending the species) – some scientist suggest a ban of at least four decades to be effective! And there is just no way, that any fishing and/or customs authority (might it be legal or corrupt) of the bordering states is up and ready to sacrifice some additional pocket-$$$.

As far as I know, only the Japanese know how to follow plans that take 50 long years to play out. And I am talking about ‘A’ and not ‘B’ plans. I just dont see how the Russians (not talking about the rest) could manage such an undertaking.

And even if they would declare such ban, let me put it in the words of sturgeon expert and conservationist Phaedra Doukakis: “The challenge for Russia is the vastness of the Volga River Delta. It won’t just take this moratorium, it will also take a pretty good crackdown on illegal fishing.”

And about that ’10-year ban rumour’ I mentioned, the latest that I picked up in the internet void was, that they reduced it to 5 years. Don’t act surprised…

Read original article.

Learn about the important work of Phaedra Doukakis and Ellen Pikitch. Both of them, sturgeon experts.

Russian authorities seize illegal caviar

“Russian police have seized 1.4 tons of sturgeon and 9 kg of caviar in two separate incidents, police said on Friday.

“The fish were discovered on Thursday in a Mitsubishi Canter truck” a police spokesman in the Far East city of Khabarovsk said.

Poachers target the fish, protected under Russian law, for its sought-after black caviar.

In another incident on Thursday, Russian South Ural police seized 9 kilograms of caviar in the restaurant carriage of a Moscow-Tashkent train.

Police said that Uzbek nationals were attempting to export the caviar from Russia illegally.

In Russia, one kilogram of the black sturgeon caviar costs around 35,000 rubles ($1,152).”

Original article: RIA Novosti

10 tons of poached caviar

Russian police have seized nearly 10 tons of black market salmon caviar, a police spokesman said on Thursday.

According to police, the caviar was supplied to Moscow Region chain stores.

The spokesman added that an investigation is ongoing.

“The caviar was packed in unsanitary conditions,” he said, adding that all the caviar had been destroyed. Police also seized a canning machine.

Salmon caviar, or red caviar, is not as highly prized as black caviar from sturgeon.

Read original article here

Astrakhan police story

Just found an interesting article on the Ria Novosti site that I want to share with you…

“Police in Astrakhan, south Russia, have destroyed more than 300 kg (661 lbs) of illegal black caviar, the regional administration reported on Monday.

“Two thousand tins of black caviar were crushed by a bulldozer and buried at the city dump,” the administration said.

The caviar was seized in 2008 from an underground store, investigation officials said.

“An examination of the caviar indicated that although it was packed into branded tins with bright labels and considered ready for sale, it was a health risk,” the Department of Internal Affairs reported.

On July 1, police burnt more then 250 kg (551 lbs) of contraband black caviar worth more then 30 million rubles ($960,000). The caviar infected with staphylococcus bacteria was seized from Moscow shops during a special police operation.

In 2007 Russia banned the harvest and sale of black caviar which extended the 2002 ban on commercial sturgeon fishing in the Caspian Sea.

The Caspian Sea sturgeon, caught in five coastal states (Russia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan and Iran) accounts for almost 90% of the world’s black caviar. According to Russian experts, it will take at least 10 years to restore the sturgeon population in Russian waters.”

With the current ban on commercial sturgeon fishing, caviarists around the world should refrain from buying any caviar coming from the Caspian Sea. But thats not a downer, as there exist today quality wise very good (if not better) alternatives to the wild caviar coming from the Caspian Sea. And one recommendable option is surely ZwyerCaviar.

Caviar & art II

 

Here is a very informative youtube video (23min long) about caviar in general. Mostly about the Russian caviar industry and the Caspian Sea (states).

But there is also a short chapter about the Russian artist Andrei Logvin and his caviar-poster mentioned in an earlier post. Watch the video between 4:55 min – 6:25min…

ENJOY!

Caviar & art

 

Andrei Logvin is a russian artist and designer from Moscow. He stirred up the local scene with his award winning advertising poster “Zhizn Udalas” about 10 years ago. It shows black caviar over red caviar. And it says in kirilic “life has been a success”. The work reflects the russian situation back in 1998, when the stock market collapsed and caviar became unaffordable for the most. Triggering a need to reflect on this national delicatesse and the must-have attitude of Moscow’s in-crowd. Of course, over the last 10 years many russians became very (stinky) rich and the impact of this poster lost its provocation.

But now, in the eye of the current economic crisis, as Russia’s finest (oligarchs) are struggling again to protect their remaining billions, this artwork might become their epitome of the Present Tense…

 

 

Russian caviar vending machine?

Dunno if this is bloody serious or just a really bad joke.

Either way it delivers me a smile.

 

(Update: according to a source this machine sells salmon caviar and not sturgeon. Uff, the world makes sense again! Thx for the tip, Velly)

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