Italy’s Agroittica Lombarda’s farmed sturgeon (Acipenser transmontanus and Acipenser baerii), branded Calvisius Caviar, has passed its third full Friend of the Sea audit since approval in 2008, underlining its commitment to sustainability.
Agroittica Lombarda said it owns the largest sturgeon farm in Europe, at more than 60 acres with tanks dedicated to aquaculture where only the finest varieties are bred. The company alone produces over 20% of the world's caviar supply mostly under the brand Calvisius Caviar.
Mr Mondella, Agroittica Lombarda, said: “Friend of the Sea project has grown internationally since we first applied for certification. Our customers request this certification and we are glad and proud to see our efforts in sturgeon conservation and clean farming being recognised.”
With its innovative aquaculture technique, Agroittica has come to be a symbol of ecological production. The surplus heat from a neighbouring steelworks is transferred to the cool resurgent waters in the farm, thus obtaining the perfect habitat for the Siberian Sturgeon and White Sturgeon of the Pacific.
Agroittica Lombarda Group also owns Storione Ticino, an aquaculture company which produces Russian Sturgeon (Acipenser gueldenstaedtii) and Adriatic Sturgeon (Acipenser naccarii), and this also carries the Friend of the Sea seal of approval.
Sturgeon is one of the oldest families of fish and is valued around the world for its precious roe, but it is also one of the rarest species left in the wild. Farming takes the pressure off endangered stocks representing a valid alternative for caviar lovers worldwide.
