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Wild Caspian Caviar Trading Allowed

OMNIVORE'S DILEMMA

Available for first time in 2 years, to chagrin of environmentalists.

Caviar fans can celebrate: There will be wild catch from the Caspian Sea for the first time in two years, after the international convention that regulates trade in endangered species issued a quota for wild Caspian caviar. (Without an issued quota, caviar cannot be exported internationally.) The quota has been set for five countries on the Caspian—Russia, Iran, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, and Turkmenistan—at 81 tons total, including three tons of beluga. Environmentalists, however, said allowing any international trading will only make things worse for the endangered species. But since wild Caspian caviar hasn't been allowed to be traded for two years, it has been in high demand on the black market. Despite progress in the taste of farmed caviar, there are still some who prefer the taste of the wild.

Read it at The New York Times