Caviar lovers' eyes on ... Idaho

BOISE — With the federal government's ban on beluga caviar from the Black Sea basin taking effect just before the busy holiday season, all eyes are turning to — Idaho?

The state's burgeoning aquaculture industry is hoping its farm-raised white sturgeon caviar will help fill the gap left by beluga on upscale menus. Several Idaho caviar farmers are starting their first commercial harvest this week.

"It really comes at a good time for us," said Linda Lemmon, secretary of the Idaho Aquaculture Association and owner of Blind Canyon Aquaranch, a trout and sturgeon farm near Hagerman. "We are really getting our first caviars on the market, so this will hopefully be a positive aspect for us."

U.S. Fish and Wildlife officials have listed beluga sturgeon populations as threatened under the Endangered Species Act. On Oct. 28, the agency said imports of beluga sturgeon would no longer be allowed from Bulgaria, Georgia, Romania, the Russian Federation, Serbia and Montenegro, Turkey and Ukraine. The ban is in addition to the agency's announcement on Sept. 30 that it was suspending all trade in the beluga sturgeon's caviar and meat from the Caspian Sea.

Interior Secretary Gale Norton said the bans would continue "until there is significant progress" with conservation programs in the Caspian and Black Sea regions.

The ban and the rumors that preceded it have driven up prices, said Betsy Sherrow, the president of the gourmet retail store Seattle Caviar Co. Sherrow was on her way to Europe to inspect and purchase beluga when the ban was announced, and she had to cancel her trip.

"The price for everything has gone up," Sherrow said. "In fact, our cost has doubled. The market price for Black Sea beluga last Christmas was $98 an ounce, and this Christmas it will probably be close to $200. We haven't established pricing yet because we just don't know."

Sherrow's biggest seller is osetra caviar, the roe that white sturgeon is most commonly compared to. Sherrow and her husband, Dale Sherrow, have been meeting regularly with Idaho fish farmers in hopes of buying any and all of the caviar available.

"In fact, my husband is going to Hagerman next Monday to check on the product. We'd be more than happy to buy the production," she said.

Breaking into the industry is no small feat. It takes anywhere from eight to 12 years for a sturgeon to mature sufficiently to produce the prized eggs, so would-be caviar growers must spend a decade caring for the creatures before they have any chance at a profit, said Leo Ray, the owner of Fish Breeders of Idaho.