$5000 per pound delicacy

A panel said Monday that it has lifted trade bans on beluga and two other types of caviar,effectively ending a year old embargo of one of the world`s most prized and expensive delicacies.Countries bordering the Caspian Sea had improved their monitoring of caviar trading and would release millions of young fish into its waters,allowing limited trade to resume.But he said the decision to grant Azerbaijan,Kazakhistan,iran and Russia permission to export 4,15 tons of beluga must be accompanied by further moves to combat declining sturgeon stocks.Some conservationists condemned the panel`s decision,noting that beluga sturgeon populations had declined by 45% from 2004 to 2005.They cite that illegal trading has been the factor for the decline of beluga sturgeon population.