China's seafood exports are no longer limited to swimming crabs, tilapia, eel and frozen products. Caviar produced by Chinese aquaculture firms, once a marginal presence in global markets, is gaining traction among overseas consumers in a sector historically led by European producers.

At a sturgeon farming base on Qiandao Lake in Hangzhou, East China's Zhejiang province, dozens of net cages float across open waters. Juvenile sturgeon, typically around six months old, are transferred into these cages, each measuring about 12 meters across. The open water environment allows the fish to grow more fully and naturally. From the surface, many sturgeon can be seen measuring over a meter in length.

A sturgeon is a cold- to sub-cold-water species that is highly demanding to farm, with particular sensitivity to water quality and temperature stability, and typically requires a relatively clean aquatic environment with suitable conditions to grow.

As they approach maturity, the fish are moved to breeding facilities in Quzhou, Zhejiang province, where producers simulate the species' migratory behavior.

By carefully regulating water flow and temperature, producers guide the sturgeon through spawning. Company executives said the fish are raised in separate pools by species and age, with caviar from nine- and 10-year-old sturgeon proving the most sought after in global markets.

"These two varieties account for more than 90 percent of our total output," said Xia Yongtao, vice-president of Hangzhou Thousand Island Lake Sturgeon Technology Co Ltd. "Other products from seven-, eight-, or even 15- and 20-year-old sturgeon mainly serve as supplementary offerings."

Roughly 90 percent of the company's caviar is exported. Consumer preferences vary widely by market.

"Russian buyers tend to favor darker-colored caviar, while German customers place greater emphasis on texture and the distinctive "bursting" sensation when the roe is tasted," Xia said, adding that to meet these demands, Chinese producers have tightened quality control from the earliest stages of breeding, refining both feed selection and cultivation methods. As a result, Chinese caviar has gained traction overseas, as global farmed caviar supply reached over 600 metric tons in 2024, including 229 tons exported by his company, Xia said.

The company's exports surged nearly 18 percent year-on-year to 269 tons in 2025, underscoring China's growing presence in the premium segment of the market.

At present, China has become the world's largest producer and exporter of caviar, with its output accounting for more than half of global farmed caviar production, according to information released by the Beijing-based Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, or CAAS.

As a key caviar production base in China, Zhejiang province recorded caviar exports worth 580 million yuan ($83.34 million) in 2025, up 16.4 percent year-on-year. Major destinations included the United States, the European Union and Southeast Asia, data from Hangzhou Customs showed.

While caviar gained prominence in Western fine dining, Chinese companies are now looking beyond traditional destinations. Emerging markets are becoming an increasingly important part of their global strategy.

Ma Li, foreign trade director of Zhejiang Qiandaohu Funday Aquatic Products Co Ltd, another Hangzhou-based caviar exporter, said that her company plans to expand its production base in Xuancheng, East China's Anhui province by five times compared with its 2025 capacity, driven by confidence in demand from economies participating in the Belt and Road Initiative.

"We entered new markets such as Azerbaijan and Georgia in 2025," said Ma. "We are now gradually expanding into more markets involved in the BRI as well as member countries of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership as consumption in these places is growing steadily."

Liu Heguang, a researcher at CAAS's Institute of Agricultural Economics and Development, said that the rise of Chinese caviar illustrates how domestic producers are moving up the value chain by combining technological refinement, long-term investment and market diversification.

zhongnan@chinadaily.com.cn