Sustainable caviar gains official accreditation

Carelian Caviar has become the first caviar to be given an SRA Approved Supplier badge by the Sustainable Restaurant Association, meaning it’s now possible to enjoy this luxury product with a clear conscience.

Headed up by President Raymond Blanc, the SRA is a non-profit organisation that helps restaurants become more sustainable and diners make more sustainable choices when eating out. It vets and rates all suppliers and restaurants before listing them on its website, www.thesra.org

To gain an SRA Approved Supplier badge, suppliers are examined in 14 key focus areas and provide detailed evidence to support their answers across three main sustainability categories – sourcing, environment and society.

Agatha Ioannou, Supplier Manager at SRA, said: "Carelian Caviar have become the first (and only) caviar supplier to pass the Sustainable Restaurant Association’s Food Made Good Supplier Approval. Carelian Caviar was successfully audited against 14 key areas across the three pillars of sustainability – Sourcing, Environment and Society. This approval logo recognised industry-wide should put all our members at ease knowing they will only be recommended with the very best suppliers already vetted and rated by our in-house experts."

Carelian Caviar is the first Scandinavian producer of ‘black gold’. Its caviar is harvested from Siberian sturgeons that have been farmed in the most sustainable way possible, in the clean, crisp waters of the Finnish lake district.

The company aims to protect wild sturgeon populations by producing farmed caviar of such consistently high quality that it competes with wild caviar. Made by hand using nothing but sturgeon eggs and salt, Carelian Caviar adheres to strict animal welfare regulations and does not contain any preservatives. It has already gone down a storm in the UK, with menu listings at restaurants including Hawksmoor, I´Atelier de Joel Robuchon, Aiden Byrne at Manchester House, Aqua, Alyn Williams, James Martin and The Whole Foods Market – Balthazar bakery.

Christian Sandefeldt, head of sales UK and USA for Carelian Caviar, said: "It is really exciting to find that only after a couple of years on the market people are approaching us, especially considering how many new caviar farms pop-up every year. Being approved by SRA has definitely set us apart from other top quality caviar brands. Unlike the big caviar brands we seem to appeal to smaller ambitious restaurants who value sustainability and being close to the actual producer."

>>>Get more information on the accreditation here