Nacre depth requirement scrapped from January

[jshepherd]

Is it true that a baroque shape indicates that the nacre is thick?

Not always. It will typically mean nacre is thick in different parts of the pearl (like the extended part).

 

[pearlescence]

Yes, Jeremy I knew that. I was making the point that pearls just don't often have certificates but it does not mean they are not legally exported or what quality they are.
But the certificate I got from Josh just lists pearls by size and grade. Who knows whether the pearls I sold were those pearls or I could lie through my teeth and say that pearls I have now are the Kamokas listed on that certificate. Unless someone sent them back to Josh how could they be sure - and perhaps not even Josh could be really sure if they were decent pearls.
So, from a consumer point of view, given that we know lots of pearls were being smuggled out anyway, the system was nice but fairly pointless and just added to the costs for legitimate pearls. It also, as it stands, stops the export of the ' souffle'ish pearls, and I assume we all want to see them.
Afterthought. As a former lawyer I'm pragmatic enough to know that a law that isn't really working, or doing what it should be, or is routinely flouted, or pointless, is a law which needs changing (not many governments actually do change such laws mind you, they just fade and go mouldy until some bright spark decides to enforce them again but in this case Adding a layer of costs wasn't contributing to prosperity or quality.

 

[LVLanghanke]

I'm super excited at the prospect of souffle Tahitians, that's for sure!

 

[JerseyPearl]

I'd like to hear more about soufflé Tahitians too.

 

[Pareltje]

Not always. It will typically mean nacre is thick in different parts of the pearl (like the extended part).

Thanks for your clarification, Jeremy.
I'm looking forward to souffle Tahitian pearls too

 

[jshepherd]

Thanks for your clarification, Jeremy.
I'm looking forward to souffle Tahitian pearls too

Souffle Tahitians are interesting. Hisano has two of them she has sliced in half to create geodes. I need to check with her to see where she is on that.

 

[KAC]

So, from a consumer point of view, given that we know lots of pearls were being smuggled out anyway, the system was nice but fairly pointless and just added to the costs for legitimate pearls. It also, as it stands, stops the export of the ' souffle'ish pearls, and I assume we all want to see them.

The fact is that you're in the minority on this one Wendy. When folks like Josh Humbert and Justin Hunter are all crying foul at the changes, I'd be inclined to listen.

If you visit the original article and read the comments you'll see people invested in that industry are very concerned.

The mistake is to believe that this will be the producers that will define the quality criteria, it will be buyers who will define it and I can already see the depreciation of the pearl of Polynesia even if these producers think master the market.

It will sell scrap, pearls without layers and without control, super !!! Bravo!!! Total discrediting of the products.

DEATH OF AN ANNOUNCED PEARL:

- Notice to pearl farmers: now you can harvest in 6 or 8 months time to reach your quota and limit costs by reducing your activities until the year after. The layer of nacre is not mandatory ... why wait longer to harvest = increased production.

Does it mean the end for Tahitian pearls? Does it mean quality will dramatically drop across the board?

Who knows...

What we do know is there will be changes to the industry and I can't see a scenario where those changes are positive for the consumer.

 

[pearlescence]

Aren't souffle Tahitians unlawful for export under the nacre depth over the bead law, Jeremy?

 

[jshepherd]

Aren't souffle Tahitians unlawful for export under the nacre depth over the bead law, Jeremy?

Yes, they currently are. Josh had two of them and gave them to Hisano.

 

[Pareltje]

Call me stupid if you want, but I'm not a pearl farmer so I don't know much about all the techniques. I wonder if nucleating Tahitian pearl oysters with mud will produce pearls with fabulous colors like freshwater souffles? Or will the mud nucleus kill the oysters?

 

[Pearl Dreams]

Regarding the elimination of the nacre thickness requirement, I can't help but think that will hurt all the farmers ultimately.

It seems to me that a significant increase in supply, caused by many pearls reaching the market that would otherwise have been ground up, would tend to suppress prices if demand for Tahitian pearls does not also increase proportionately.

 

[pearlescence]

Jeremy, I don't know the exact current legislation (and can't find the statute itself online) but isn't that an unlawful export then? If giving the pearls away gets around the law it is a remarkably bad law with a huge hole in it.

 

[pearlescence]

The low grade ones are already getting to market, that's the point Pearl Dreams. If a farmer knows his pearls will fail he simply smuggles them out rather than submitting them for testing/

 

[Icyjade]

Moving forward, it's wise to be wary of cheaper Tahitians, but I'd think most will be terrific as ever.

Interesting discussion.

Maybe I'm optimistic but I tend to agree with this. None of my pearls are certified anyway. In the end it still goes down to buying from trusted vendors and also how they look/luster/etc.

 

[jshepherd]

Jeremy, I don't know the exact current legislation (and can't find the statute itself online) but isn't that an unlawful export then? If giving the pearls away gets around the law it is a remarkably bad law with a huge hole in it.

They are Josh's experimental pearls which he hand-carried for personal use, not for resale.

The law is meant to protect against those bags of big, cheap Tahitians you see in Hong Kong with peeling and holes in the nacre.

 

[jshepherd]

The low grade ones are already getting to market, that's the point Pearl Dreams. If a farmer knows his pearls will fail he simply smuggles them out rather than submitting them for testing/

Your generalizations are wrong.

There are a few bad apples, but they are the exception and not the rule. I only know they exist because I see the pearls in Hong Kong and they rarely make it out to the show floor. The only company I've seen consistently with pearls that look smuggled is Shanghai Pearls.

A good rule of thumb from years ago, if a dealer has circle strands for sale for the approximate equivalent of the export tax (around $100), they didn't exit FP by legal channels.

I have never dealt with a grower or broker in Tahiti who offered to smuggle the pearls out at a discount. I've never even heard it discussed. Every time they've gone through testing and every time a percentage is removed for one reason or another. I've personally watched a farmer throw pearls into the ocean because he didn't want them leaving the farm as a representation of what he grows.

Most Tahitian pearl farmers are proud and honest people. It's the people who cheat and the people who buy from the cheaters who hurt the market.

 

[jshepherd]

.Justin is in Fiji so he's not bound by the Tahitian nacre requirements is that correct? If he's not, what is the nacre depth on his Tahitians ?because his are truly gorgeous.

Josh is bound by the requirements is that right ? So his pearls would have the required ( for now) depth - it would be interesting to see if there is a visible difference in the appearance of the pearls if the nacre is less. Though I would imagine he will continue to grow his stunning pearls to his current standard.

That's correct. Justin is not bound by the law and Josh is.

 

[Pearl Dreams]

Also, strictly speaking, Justin's pearls are called Fijan pearls, not Tahitians. The shell they are cultured in is a variant of the mollusk used in French Polynesia: Pinctada margaritifera typica.

Different location, different mollusk and different rules.

http://www.fijipearls.com/colours-of-fiji/

 

[pearlescence]

Jeremy, what a law is meant to do (known as the 'mischief')and what it actually does are sometimes different things. While the law may be intended to stop sales of trash pearls, if it specifies the nacre depth over bead in all pearls then that is what is legal/not legal.
Likewise, the pearls have been exported...does the law provide only for pearls for sale or is it any pearls?
It sounds a bit like the UK marijuana law, where enforcement turned a blind eye to 'personal use' amounts and only prosecuted 'possession with intent to supply' but possessing even a smidge remained illegal, nevertheless.
I did not say that pearl farmers were in any way smuggling pearls. But poor quality pearls seems to be a real concern for forum members since the change in the law was announced.

 

[KAC]

Your generalizations are wrong.

There are a few bad apples, but they are the exception and not the rule. I only know they exist because I see the pearls in Hong Kong and they rarely make it out to the show floor. The only company I've seen consistently with pearls that look smuggled is Shanghai Pearls.

I've seen them as well. If a Chinese freshwater pearl company has a couple of bags of really bad low grade Tahitians for sale... well you don't have to be a detective to figure it out.