Failed salmon season 2026: fish and caviar price forecast

The disastrous salmon season of 2026 threatens a serious increase in prices for red fish and caviar. Chairman of the Interregional Association of Coastal Fisheries of the Northern Basin Valentin Balashov told Reedus about how the situation on the market will change.

As the publication recalled, earlier the head of the Association of Industrial and Trade Enterprises of the Fish Market, Alexander Fomin, said that in order to curb prices, Russia will have to massively purchase red fish abroad - in Chile, Turkey and China. According to his estimates, an additional 150 thousand tons are required, and the volume of catch this year was half that of last year.

Balashov, however, believes that there will not be a catastrophic rise in fish prices. In addition to imports, the supply is supported by domestic aquaculture - trout farming on the Kola Peninsula, Karelia and the Leningrad region.

“Despite the decline in wild salmon catches, we still have farmed red fish. Now the artificial production of trout is showing breakthrough dynamics. I think that by the end of the year prices will be the same as now,” the expert said.

The situation is different with red caviar. According to Balashov, Russia practically does not import this product, so it will not be possible to compensate for the deficit through foreign supplies.

“Unfortunately, everything will be sad with red caviar. In good years, the market was 12 thousand tons, of which 10 thousand was wild salmon caviar. This year, based on the results of the catch, we have 3 thousand tons of wild fish caviar and the same 2 thousand tons of aquaculture. Therefore, prices will rise like an avalanche. By the end of the year, they can reach the level of black caviar, stellate sturgeon or sockeye salmon - 40 thousand rubles per kilogram,” the fishery owner warned.