Lumpfish (Cyclopterus lumpus) is a marine fish of the Cyclopteridae family, widely distributed in the cold waters of the western and eastern Atlantic, where it is also known as lumpsucker. A deep-bodied, almost spherical fish with a sucking disc formed from its pelvic fins, it is eaten fresh or smoked, particularly in Nordic countries and Greenland. It is best known commercially for its eggs: the roes are harvested, cleaned, salted and often pasteurised, then sold fresh or as inexpensive caviar substitutes, sometimes coloured to resemble sturgeon caviar. Roe processing demands strict hygiene and cold-chain control, since fish roe is a perishable, ready-to-eat product vulnerable to Listeria and spoilage bacteria; sustainable quotas protect wild stocks.