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No fishing for eggs

  • 14/02/2006

No fishing for eggs The global trade in caviar and other products made from the wild, endangered sturgeon fish has been temporarily banned. The Convention for International Trade in Endangered Species (cites) has put a halt on sturgeon fishing till exporting countries prove that the quotas sought for 2006-2007 will not affect the fish population.

cites is withholding export quotas for Azerbaijan, Russia, Iran and Kazakhstan, claiming their quota requests may be too high. Countries wishing to export sturgeon products "must demonstrate that their proposed quotas reflect current population trends and are sustainable,' said cites secretary-general Willem Wijnstekers. It has urged the exporting countries to come up with a common management plan.

About 110-150 tonnes of caviar are exported annually from the region under a quota system overseen by cites. The global legal caviar trade is estimated at us $100 million per year.

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