Book Review

Book Review; Catch of the Day: Sharp Tale of Scramble for Fish Eggs

Rubin, Merle

2002

Overview

Springing up alongside the sturgeon-rich Delaware River, a little boomtown appropriately known as Caviar, Saffron tells us, \"supplied more of the world's caviar during the 1880s than any place on earth.\" But before long, the sturgeon of the Delaware River met a fate similar to their German cousins in the Elbe. Although industrialization and pollution were an additional threat to sturgeon, it would seem from Saffron's account that in most cases it was overfishing that decimated the sturgeon even before pollution had a chance to do its damage. Although, as Saffron describes, there are unscrupulous people who've turned the sale and distribution of caviar into a fishy version of the illicit drug trade, the problem goes beyond that. One of the people Saffron portrays is an honest and likable Russian caviar producer who understands the problem and supports efforts to restock the waters and restrict the catch. Still, he wants to make a living and thus is inclined to take an overly optimistic view of the problem. Saffron also explains very lucidly the difficulties that have plagued international regulatory efforts. While many of the former Soviet republics have failed to address the problem, she notes, Iran has been doing an admirable job of regulating and restocking its part of the Caspian Sea.

• Publisher: Los Angeles Times Communications LLC
• Subject: Books-titles / Caviar: The Strange History and Uncertain Future of the World's Most Coveted Delicacy / Nonfiction / Saffron, Inga