What is Caviar?

What is caviar, what is it made of, and where does it come from?

Although most people refer to all fish eggs as caviar, the real thing comes only from the sturgeon. It is a delicacy commonly enjoyed on its own, as a spread, or as a garnish. In this guide, we cover everything else you might wonder about: what caviar is made of, the main types and grades, what it costs, how it is made and where to buy it in Canada.

Looking to try authentic sturgeon caviar? Browse our premium caviar selection.

Sturgeon caviar is cured in salt and is typically black, dark grey, or dark brown, though some types are olive, amber or golden. Other "caviars" (known as fish roe or red caviar), such as salmon, trout, lumpfish, tobiko and masago, are typically orange and red. Learn more about the differences between caviar and other fish eggs.

Check out this fun video to learn what caviar is, how it's made, and how it's best enjoyed.

What Is Caviar Made Of?

Real caviar is made of just two ingredients: sturgeon eggs and salt. The eggs are unfertilized, harvested from a mature female sturgeon just before she would spawn, then gently cleaned and cured with a small amount of salt.

Premium caviar is usually malossol, Russian for "lightly salted", with only about 3 to 4% salt. Some producers add a small amount of preservative, and some caviar is gently pasteurized to extend its shelf life. Caviar is never cooked: it is a cured, ready-to-eat food.

So, what fish does caviar come from? Only the sturgeon family (Acipenseridae), which includes beluga, osetra, sevruga, kaluga, Siberian and white sturgeon, among others.

What Are Fish Eggs Called?

Fish eggs are called roe. When the roe comes from a sturgeon and is salt-cured, it is called caviar. Roe from other fish has its own names, many of them borrowed from Japanese cuisine:

Roe from salmon and trout is often called "red caviar", and sturgeon caviar "black caviar". Explore our fish roe and red caviar collection.

Types of Caviar

The sturgeon family (scientific name Acipenseridae) has 27 species, which originate and live in different parts of the Northern Hemisphere. According to the IUCN, every remaining species is now threatened with extinction in the wild, which is why nearly all caviar today is farmed.

Each species produces unique and distinct eggs that differ in taste, size, and colour. You may have heard of some of the most expensive and popular ones, such as Beluga Caviar, Osetra Caviar, and Sevruga Caviar.

Similarly, non-sturgeon "caviars" come from many different families of fish and vary in size, taste, and colour as well.

See our guide about the different types of caviar to learn more. New to caviar? Start with our beginner's guide to caviar.

Grading & Labelling System

Caviar is graded by eye, touch and taste. There is no single international grading standard, but most producers look at the same things:

A large egg with a perfectly round shape, firm texture and even colour will command a top grade (often called Grade 1). Smaller, softer or less uniform eggs make up the second grade, which still tastes good but costs less.

You may have come across certain labels that say "Imperial", "Royal", "Royal Imperial", "Special Reserve", "President", "Tsar", etc.

These are not part of an industry standard, and each producer uses them differently, mainly for marketing purposes and product differentiation.

For example, you may find a producer with Classic Beluga ($), Imperial Beluga ($$), and Royal Beluga ($$$). While these are all caviar from the same species (Beluga sturgeon), the difference will be the egg size, shape, and firmness, among other less important factors such as colour.

In the end, you must look beyond the marketing labels, find a trusted source, and more importantly, one you can buy from and enjoy consistently.

Caviar Cost

Caviar is notoriously one of the most expensive foods in the world. In Canada, sturgeon caviar typically costs about CA$90 to CA$220 for a 28 g (1 oz) tin, or roughly CA$3,200 to CA$7,900 per kilogram, and rare types such as Beluga cost considerably more.

However, this is only true for real sturgeon caviar. Fish roe such as salmon or masago is far more affordable, often a small fraction of the price.

In brief, sturgeon caviar is expensive because it takes a long time and a lot of effort to produce: farmed white sturgeon take about 10 years to mature, and wild beluga 13 to 22 years.

To learn more, check out our Complete Guide to Caviar Prices or read our article on Why Caviar is so Expensive.

Caviar Taste

All roe (sturgeon and non-sturgeon) typically has buttery or creamy, salty and ocean flavours. Sturgeon caviar is very rich and buttery, with a light touch of salt, subtle nutty notes and a complex, savoury finish. Non-sturgeon roe is usually bolder and saltier, with a simpler flavour profile. Good caviar should never taste strongly fishy.

If you want to learn more on this topic, read our Caviar Flavour and Taste Guide.

Production

Before sturgeons became endangered, caviar was extracted from wild sturgeons in various parts of the world, with the most famous coming from the cold waters of the Caspian Sea, around Russia, Iran, Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan.

Decades of overfishing and poaching changed that. Since April 1, 1998, all sturgeon species have been listed under CITES, the international treaty that regulates trade in endangered species, so every international shipment of caviar needs a permit. Wild sturgeon catches collapsed from about 31,800 tonnes in 1977 to just 222 tonnes in 2018, according to the EU's market observatory (EUMOFA).

As a result, the vast majority of caviar on the market today is farmed. In 2018, the world produced about 380 tonnes of caviar:

• Asia: China is the largest producer, with about a third of the world's caviar.
• Europe: Italy, France, Poland and Germany produce most of Europe's caviar, with Spain, Bulgaria and others also farming sturgeon.
• North America: the United States and Canada farm sturgeon on a smaller scale.

Non-sturgeon roe, on the other hand, comes from smaller, more abundant fish, so most of it still comes from wild fisheries around the world.

Preparation

How is caviar made? The process is simple, but it takes great care:

Caviar in Canada

Canada has its own sturgeon and a small caviar industry:

• Lake sturgeon (Québec): wild lake sturgeon caviar from Lake Saint-Pierre, available seasonally under strict management.
• White sturgeon (British Columbia): farmed in land-based tanks; wild white sturgeon are protected.
• Atlantic and shortnose sturgeon (New Brunswick): farmed on the Bay of Fundy coast.

Most caviar sold in Canada is imported from farms in Europe and Asia. All of it must be legally traded under CITES, and travellers need a CITES permit to bring more than 250 g of sturgeon caviar into Canada, according to the Canadian Food Inspection Agency.

Because caviar is perishable, buy it from a seller that ships it refrigerated and labels the species, origin and best-before date. We ship sturgeon caviar and fish roe refrigerated from Montreal across Canada. For more options, see our guide on where to buy caviar in Canada.

Different Names & Spellings

In English, we refer to sturgeon roe, and often other fish roe, as caviar. It is pronounced KAV-ee-ar.

The word itself has travelled far. English borrowed it in the 16th century through Italian and Turkish (havyar), and it most likely comes from the Persian khāviyār, from khāya-dār, meaning "egg-holding".

If you are travelling abroad or visiting a specialty store with imported products, you may find caviar spelled in the following ways:

• Cavier
• Cabiar
• Caviear
• Cabier
• Kaviar
• Kavier
• Kaviaar
• Kaviare
• Khaviar
• Khavyar
• Caviaro
• Havyar

All these different spellings refer to the same product, caviar: they are simply phonetic spellings from other languages, such as Persian, Turkish or German. In Russian, caviar is ikra (икра), and sturgeon caviar is chyornaya ikra (черная икра), "black caviar".

Frequently Asked Questions

What is caviar in simple terms?

Caviar is salted fish eggs from the sturgeon. It is eaten in small spoonfuls as a luxury delicacy, often on blinis or toast.

What is caviar made of?

Real caviar is made of sturgeon eggs and salt. Some caviar also contains a small amount of preservative or is pasteurized.

What fish does caviar come from?

True caviar comes only from sturgeon, such as beluga, osetra, sevruga, kaluga and Siberian sturgeon. Eggs from other fish are called fish roe.

What are fish eggs called?

Fish eggs are called roe. Salt-cured sturgeon roe is called caviar, salmon roe is ikura, and flying fish and capelin roe are tobiko and masago.

Is caviar raw?

Yes. Caviar is not cooked; it is cured with salt and eaten cold. Some caviar is gently pasteurized, which extends its shelf life without cooking it.

Is red caviar real caviar?

Not strictly. Red caviar is salmon or trout roe. It is real fish roe, but true caviar comes only from sturgeon.

Where does caviar come from today?

Almost all caviar is now farmed. China produces about a third of the world's caviar, followed by European producers such as Italy, France, Poland and Germany.

Why is caviar so expensive?

Sturgeon take about 10 to 20 years to mature, they are endangered in the wild, and caviar is harvested and cured by hand.

How do you pronounce caviar?

In English, caviar is pronounced KAV-ee-ar.

Key Takeaways

• Caviar is the salt-cured, unfertilized roe of the sturgeon.
• Fish eggs are called roe; only sturgeon roe is true caviar.
• Real caviar contains just sturgeon eggs and salt, usually about 3 to 4% salt.
• All 27 sturgeon species are protected, and nearly all caviar today is farmed.
• China is the largest producer; Canada farms white, Atlantic and shortnose sturgeon and harvests wild lake sturgeon.
• In Canada, a 28 g tin of sturgeon caviar typically costs CA$90 to CA$220.

This guide was reviewed by CaviarHub and updated in October 2026. Market data comes from EUMOFA, species status from the IUCN, trade rules from CITES and the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, and prices from CaviarHub research.

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