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Article: Capelin: whole fish find more favor in zoos than in restaurants, but there's a growing upscale market for capelin caviar.(product spotlight)
- Article from:
- Seafood Business
- Article date:
- March 1, 2005
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2005 Diversified Publications. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Over the past few years upscale retailers and restaurateurs have found that capelin roe is an affordable, versatile alternative to traditional caviar varieties. In fact, Mallotus villosus is valued more for its eggs than as a food fish.
Because there is such a small market for capelin, the egg-bearing females are separated from the males and processed for roe, while the males are used primarily for fertilizer or fish meal or in some cases sold to zoos and theme parks. If you've ever seen a seal show at an aquarium or Shamu at Sea World, the fish they are fed as a reward were most likely capelin.
This small, smelt-like species reaches a maximum length of ...