Avruga caviar

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Avruga is a caviar product made from herring. Concern for the diminishing sturgeon population resulting from demand for the prized Beluga caviar has seen Avruga quickly gain popularity as a more sustainable and cheaper alternative. Avruga is pearlescent black in colour, with taste nuances supposedly similar to Beluga.

Avruga is not a generic term for herring caviar, it is a specific product marketed by a Spanish company called Pescaviar^[1]. According to the website of marine fishery consultants MacAlister Elliott^[2], Avruga is produced for Pescaviar by a company named Cataliment and the product has Marine Stewardship Council "Chain of Custody" certification.

Use of the phrase "Pescaviar has developped[sic], from wild herring" on the Pescaviar website and the term "faux caviar" on the MacAlister Elliott website indicates that Avruga may not be roe of herring but, rather, a herring meat product made to resemble traditional caviar. Other theories indicate that after reading the list of ingredients on the each container, it is more a sago pearl product with squid ink and herring flavour.