[Caitlin]

Part 3 follows:

Latendresse likes to think of himself as a "pearl designer." During the mollusk's 3-year grow-out period, he claims he can produce rounds, kechis, baroques and mabes from the same mussel. By creating nuclei in various shapes, he can produce the shape he desires: coins, crosses or wings, for example. He drove me a short distance to Kentucky Lake, one of the largest man-made reservoirs in the U.S., covering 2,380 miles of shoreline. He has a lease from the Tennessee Valley Authority ~VA) for a section of water. To one side, a large sign with red letters warned: "Biological Experiment, Underwater Obstructions." To the other, an armed guard watched us from a houseboat. There were no indications that a pearl could be found within 1000 miles. There were several hundred PVC pipes, each 40-feet long, lying parallel in rows, covering 9 acres. The pipes support nets which can hold up to a dozen mussels. By placing the nets 3 feet apart--unlike the Japanese who leave only afoot of space between them--the nacre grows twice as fast. Latendresse farms many mussel species, but likes to use Megalonaias nervosa, the "washboard," and Fusconaia ebena, the "ebony."
He told me that there were thousands of mussels hanging from the pipes. Each mussel contained 7 to 9 nuclei which he manufactured and which his 25 implantors had carefully placed in each animal. Many of these mollusks had been in the water for three years, which he feels is sufficient time to cover a 10 mm bead with at least 2 mm of nacre to produce a 12 mm round pearl. But the vast majority of the crop would be mabes, which he calls "domes." Another of his Tennessee farms, also on Kentucky Lake, is reported to have 27 acres and 2 million mollusks (his competitors doubt the existence of this farm). He will sell the majority of these pearls through his own jewelry manufacturing business, also in Camden.
Latendresse pointed out that American pearls exhibit more colors than Japanese pearls--from silver-white to pink and lavender. He accuses the Japanese of producing dyed pearls with thin nacre layers. By placing the nucleus in exactly. the right place in the mussel, he can increase the amount of nacre. He recently blasted the Japanese in a national jewelry publication:
"The pearls that come out of Japanese oysters in Hamagge look horrible. If they don't process them by bleaching and dyeing, very few would be saleable." He then added: "Quality and shape are our difference. We can produce a luster they can't." (Reilley, 1990). Latendresse said that 1990 sales for his entire operation were $17 million, with pearls accounting for $2.5 million of this. Of the $2.5 million, the bulk of production was sold here, much of it to Japanese exporters. The company, which has 80 workers, turned a profit for the first time in 1990. Mabe pearls, which wholesale for $40 to $300, account for 90% of sales. I asked to see his bead implanting Operation. He politely refused. The techniques used are "very proprietary." We returned instead to his office, a nondescript red brick building attached to a long yellow warehouse. Once again, there was no way to tell that this business had anything to do with pearls. A sign saying "Tennessee Shell Company" indicated Latendresse's main business: the buying of mussel shells for export to Japan. There were no secrets here; mountains of mussel shells were separated according to species and quality.
As we talked, divers with mussels for sale drove into the parking lot and started negotiating with a buyer. Latendresse pays between $.50 and $5 a pound, with the larger shells getting the higher prices. He ships two 22-ton containers of shell each working day, or roughly 45% of the 11,000 tons of shells exported from the U.S. annually. The mussels first go through a steamer, and then a tumbler to knock out the meat, which is used for animal feeds. The shells are then dried and packed in burlap bags for shipment, with each bag holding 200 pounds of shell. We reached the C.E.O.'s office through a maze of doors -security is an important concern here. His walls were covered with photos of his family and various celebrities, many offering praise for his faithfulness to the Republican party. He is preparing three of his children to take over the business. He doesn't think they'll have much trouble with Peach or Cross.
Latendresse views Jim Peach, his one-time protege and neighbor 30 miles up the road, as little competition. The famous feud between the two men has been going on for 18 years. He likewise thinks little of Cross's chances. "One of my people saw his operation a few months ago- -he didn't know it. From what I can tell about his location, he's going to have a tough time."
He would rather discuss the Japanese who scold him for claiming to make better freshwater pearls. Latendresse likes to tell the story, recently published in Forbes magazine, about the time he was in Japan and was admonished by his hosts for attempting to produce their national treasure. He says he replied: "Well, sir, Henry Ford is part of our history, and is certainly part of America's past. Look at Toyota, Nissan--just what have you people done to Ford's idea?"
A few years ago, he told National Jeweler magazine that he will possess 12%-15 % of the Japanese market for cultured pearls and price them out of the freshwater pearl business (Berenblatt, 1988). He plans to expand operations, opening up a major jewelry manufacturing facility near Nashville next year, and continuing to look for new farming sites. Does he have any doubts about taking on die Japanese or expanding the market for American pearls? Latendresse leaned across his desk. "I wouldn't have directed my children into the pearl business if! didn't think there was a future in it!"