Skilled technicians at Royal Pearl Company are implanting pearl embryos into mature oysters.
At the end of April, the sun was blazing hot. We made a journey to An Hoa commune, Tam Nong district to learn about freshwater pearl farming, at the invitation of artisan Ho Thanh Tuan - Chairman of the Board of Directors of Hoang Gia Pearl Company. We set off at 3am, but it was not until 8am that we arrived at the freshwater pearl farm named MK owned by Mr. Ha Van Tam. Mr. Tam is a retired doctor who is very passionate about raising swiftlets and pearls. Mr. Tam said: “5 years ago, I experimented with raising freshwater pearls with the advice and technical support of experts and skilled technicians. The first batch of pearls was also harvested with silver and gold pearls that are considered to be of very high quality and value.”
Being only familiar with shrimp and fish, the story of freshwater mussels producing beautiful and valuable pearls attracted me even more. Looking at the color of the pond water, I commented: “This pond shows that the algae density is quite high. With this abundant food source (algae), the mussels must grow very quickly and plumply”. Mr. Tam shared: “Actually, raising mussels for pearls is not too difficult, you just need to invest in the initial seed and ensure a stable water source, and the company’s skilled technicians will take care of the pearl cultivation. The big difficulty here is the high initial investment cost and the long cultivation time. Just the time from cultivation to harvesting the pearls alone must be at least 2 years or more”.
Artisan Ho Thanh Tuan agreed with my comment, but also gave his own perspective as a person with 25 years of experience in pearl farming: “The water in the pond is a bit stagnant, so there is a lot of algae, the oysters in this pond will be very fat, but they are also very susceptible to disease and especially the pearls will not have the desired beautiful color”. As Artisan Ho Thanh Tuan commented, the oysters pulled up from the pond are very big, very heavy and when the shell is split in half, there is a lot of meat. However, the most important thing is that the pearl inside that fat meat is not naturally bright and is a bit dark.
Bringing the pearl to light, Artisan Ho Thanh Tuan further explained: “This type of pearl, if used to make jewelry, usually has low value. Only in places with good water circulation and a guaranteed food source, will the pearl be bright, have beautiful colors, and have high value. Therefore, in the future, for ponds like this, I will suggest that the partner should only fatten the pearls. After implanting the pearl embryo, move it to a new breeding area with good water circulation so that the pearl quality will be better and have higher value.”
Regarding the farming environment, both Mr. Tam and Artisan Ho Thanh Tuan said that the water source of the Tien River through Tam Nong district is very suitable for pearl farming. With a reasonable amount of alluvium, plus year-round sunshine, the natural food source for pearls is abundant for oysters to develop and create pearls with beautiful colors and high value. Mr. Tam is also quite knowledgeable about the value of oysters: "A pearl costs from several million to tens of millions of dong, especially black pearls which are always very expensive. Not only quality pearls, but also the oyster shell, oyster meat and unqualified pearls for jewelry all have a great value and especially when combining pearl farming and processing with tourism , the efficiency will be greatly improved".
Pearl farming is difficult, but finding a new outlet is the decisive factor for the success of the farming profession. This is also the reason why Mr. Tam proactively contacted to establish a partnership with Royal Pearl Company - a business with 25 years of experience in pearl farming and trading, with a brand name and reputation in the domestic and foreign markets, with 20 pearl showrooms nationwide. From here, the Royal Pearl Joint Venture Dong Thap was born with the name: "Royal Pearl Company Dong Thap", aiming to realize the "Freshwater Pearl Farming Project in Dong Thap".
In addition to being used for jewelry, pearls are also widely used in the processing of cosmetics, typically facial whitening masks. This is also a strong product of Royal Pearl Company in the domestic and foreign markets today, so the demand for pearls is very large. According to Mr. Tam, in addition to the business purpose of building the Dong Thap pearl brand, the company also combines the cultivation profession with the development of eco-tourism. With the orientation of building this place into a model for the freshwater pearl industry in Vietnam, Royal Pearl Dong Thap hopes to not only bring sustainable economic value to the community, but also contribute to shaping the freshwater pearl industry in Dong Thap in particular and the Mekong Delta region in general.
Artisan Ho Thanh Tuan - Chairman of the Board of Directors of Hoang Gia Pearl Joint Stock Company ( Ho Chi Minh City), said: “The first task is to establish a joint venture of Hoang Gia Pearl Dong Thap, to take advantage of each other's strengths. Secondly, I want to give my exclusive pearl invention to the joint venture to create a premise for developing the pearl cultivation, processing, and branding industry in Dong Thap province in particular and the Mekong Delta in general. I am also a son of the Mekong Delta river region, so for me, contributing to the success of the pearl industry in the Mekong Delta is a happiness”.
The Dong Thap Royal Pearl Joint Venture is not only a cooperation project, but also a long-term commitment to open a new direction, contributing to exploiting the maximum potential of the water surface of the Tien River area of Dong Thap province in general and the Mekong Delta region in particular. And, that also means that the pearl dream of the residents of the land of pink lotus has been and is gradually becoming a reality.
Article and photos: HOANG NHA
Source: https://baocantho.com.vn/khat-vong-ngoc-trai-tren-dat-sen-hong-a187416.html
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