Ushering in the New Year, international caviar orders are flooding into Quzhou Xunlong Aquatic Food Sci-tech Development Co, located in Shishi township, Kecheng district, Quzhou, Zhejiang province.

That's because the 15-year-old Zhejiang enterprise now produces 35 percent of the world's caviar.

In its 5,000-square-meter caviar processing center, a surgical-grade clean environment hosts a highly efficient production line. The process includes fish roe extraction, washing, sorting, drying, removing impurities, and salting.

"From extracting the roe to washing, sorting, salting, and canning, there are a total of 16 steps, all of which must be completed within 15 minutes in a 12 degree Celsius environment," explained Mei Kaixian, vice-president of the Xunlong Sci-tech Research Institute.

A worker cans the caviar at the processing center run by Quzhou Xunlong Aquatic Food Sci-tech Development Co. [Photo/Tide News]

In April 2013, the company's chairman Wang Bin established China's largest sturgeon processing center in Shishi township, Kecheng. Sturgeon require specific water quality and temperature conditions to survive. Shishi township, located on the banks of the Wuxi River, boasts unique cold water that is ideal for sturgeon farming.

In 2024, the Xunlong Sci-tech Co exported about 230 metric tons of caviar, a 17 percent increase on the previous year and setting a record for its annual export trade volume.