From caviar to truffles: These are the 10 most expensive foods in the world

Humans need to eat, but with inflation affecting so many Americans, it's not as cheap to eat as it was a year ago. According to GoBankingRates, groceries cost on average between $150 to $300 per month per person, varying on location, dietary choices and spending habits.

While annual food-at-home prices usually increase 2.0 percent each year, the average annual food-at-home price from 2021 to 2022 increased 11.4 percent, higher than any retail food price inflation since 2002, according to the USDA Economic Research Service.

People are spending more money now than they ever have on food because of inflation. Food prices affect different households differently: Some people feel the pinch and others remain unaffected because of their wealth.

What is the most expensive food in the world?

Almas caviar might be the most expensive food in the world, clocking in at $34,500 USD per kilogram. It's really expensive because it's rare and is sourced exclusively from the Iranian Beluga sturgeon (also referred to as the Huso Huso).

The Iranian Beluga creates two forms of caviar: the Beluga and the Almas. Beluga caviar comes in at $24,000 USD per kilogram, according to Marky’s. However, the Almas is worth $10,000 USD more because it must come from an albino female beluga.

Almas caviar comes only from an albino beluga sturgeon that is over 100 years old, as older sturgeons have a spongier texture than younger fish, according to EHL Insights.

Guinness World Records reports the Almas beluga sturgeons are found in the most uncontaminated parts of the Caspian Sea, near Iran. Because of their clean habitat and bright, translucent white skin with bright pink eyes, the caviar is a pearl white color, having a creamy and distinct nutty taste of butter and brine.

Almas Caviar vs. Strottarga Bianco

Although the Almas caviar from an Iranian beluga sturgeon is recorded as the most expensive food in the world, an independent fish farmer says differently.

Walter Grüll and his son, of Salzburg, Austria, raise Siberian Albino Sturgeon on their tiny fish farm. According to the Grull restaurant site, the sturgeon they raise take 14-16 years to cultivate, and after being harvested, the roe is dehydrated and sprinkled with a layer of 22-karat edible gold.

After the golden finish, the Strottarga Bianco caviar is marked at $113,630 USD per kilogram, according to Prestige. This delicacy is only available upon custom order directly to the Grüll restaurant.

Top 10 Most Expensive Foods in the World

Caviar is just one of the many exquisite delicacies that people will pay thousands of dollars for. Here are the top ten most expensive foods in the world and what they sell for:

Albino Beluga Sturgeon Caviar

Almas caviar comes from the female albino beluga sturgeon, aged at 100 years old and is found in the most uncontaminated parts of the Caspian Sea.

Almas caviar sells for $34,500 USD per kilogram, tasting of butter and brine with a creamy and distinctly nutty flavor.

Saffron

Saffron is a spice made of the dried stigma (the female organ) of the saffron crocus flower, having a unique taste and smell described as floral, honey-like and slightly bitter.

Saffron sells between $10 and $20 per gram. Saffron is typically grown in Iran and is a common ingredient in Spanish, Iranian, Moroccan and Indian dishes.

Kobe Beef

Kobe is a type of beef that comes specifically from Wagyu cattle. In order to be considered Kobe, the cattle must be born, raised and processed within Japan's Hyogo Prefecture in Western Japan.

In the United States, Kobe beef can cost $25 to $50 per ounce and more at restaurants. Kobe beef is unique and distinctive for the white veins of fat that run through the meat, curated through its rich grain diet.

Bluefin Tuna

Bluefin tuna is a staple of sushi and sashimi cuisine in Japan, having a buttery, rich flavor and tender texture. Because of its popularity worldwide, overfishing in the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans has made the bluefin tuna now an endangered species.

In Tokyo in January 2023, a 212 kg bluefin tuna sold at an auction for $273,000, equaling $1,287 per kilo. Single pieces of bluefin tuna could cost between $10 and $80 at a sushi restaurant.

White Truffles

White truffles, or Alba truffles, are the most expensive truffles in the world, primarily found in the Piedmont region of Italy, as well as parts of Croatia and Slovenia. A single ounce of white truffles can go for over $250.

Truffles are the edible spores of a type of underground fungus and have an earthy flavor with hints of oak and garlic. White truffles require a special relationship with tree roots in order to grow and rely on forest animals to eat and spread their spores.

Edible Gold Leaf

Edible Gold leaf sheets are often layered on cakes or pastries for decorative applications and are completely edible as long as they are between 22 to 24 karats.

Edible gold sheets are tasteless and contain a minor amount of naturally occurring silver. Edible gold sheets are about $169 to over $15,000 per pound.

Kopi Luwak Coffee

Kopi luwak coffee is made from coffee beans that have been eaten and excreted by Asian palm civets, a type of Indonesian wild cat-like animal. Inside the civet's digestive tract, the beans are fermented and broken down, then the coffee is harvested from the civet's feces, washed thoroughly and roasted.

The coffee is described as having a rich, smooth flavor with hints of chocolate and caramel. When harvested in the wild, a pound of these coffee beans can go for $600, and a single cup could run for $100.

Elvish Honey

Elvish honey is sourced from a 1,800-meter-deep cave in the Turkish city of Artvin. Additionally, this honey doesn't involve any beekeeper or hive, rather Elvish honey is produced naturally through bees collecting pollen from wildflowers in the surrounding forest and then transforming it into liquid in the cave.

The taste and unique location increases the Elvish honey to sell for $5,330 USD per kilogram.

Iberico Ham

Iberian ham (Jamón Ibérico) comes from the rear leg of a black pig, matured for 24 to 36 months and is produced in Portugal and Spain. After processing, the meat is salted, dried and aged for up to three years.

Due to the length of curation, a single leg of Iberico Ham (13 to 17 lbs) can cost between $500 and $4,500 USD. The ham has a nutty flavor with hints of acorns, herbs and spices and is served in thin slices.

Oysters

Oysters are found in brackish waters along the US coast, and the Coffin Bay King Oysters take nearly seven years to fully mature. The oyster industry saw short supply and heavy demand, making a sack of oysters $70 USD at the dock.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: What is the most expensive food in the world? Here are the top 10.