Cook Islands Pearling Developments

[Josh]

Cook Island farmer: "In fact, its proven that our black lip shells retain a better colouring than found in Tahiti."
Buddy, thems is fightin' words.

 

[SteveM]

Josh, is there any formal or informal communication between the Tahitian and Cook Island farming communities? Would be interesting to know.

 

[jshepherd]

Cook Island farmer: "In fact, its proven that our black lip shells retain a better colouring than found in Tahiti."

According to whom? That is a very interesting statement.

I would agree that there are some interesting colors that come from the Cooks that are not as common in French Polynesia, but deep peacocks are more prevalent in FP than in the Cooks, and these are some of the most valuable. From the Cooks you see more of the golds and the lighter colors. The light-color lots sell for much less than the dark lots wholesale.

 

[SteveM]

Need to call in the Cook Islands defense fund?

 

[Josh]

Hi Steve, I have my ear to the ground for that sort of thing and have to answer "no" to your question. Technology wise the Cooks are regarded as kind of back woods. I personally would love to go there if a seeding opportunity came up.
Jeremy, that was my understanding too: more lights than darks but once again that often goes hand in hand with less sophistication in the grafting process. What I would like to know is how the water temp compares to FP?

 

[SteveM]

Could be a good opportunity to test the CIPA (Cook Islands Pearl Authority) preparedness on this issue, I'll send a message and see what they might say (or if). My feeling is that they are on the fence at the moment whether to stay independent or throw in the towel and just become an integral part of the Tahitian sphere.

 

[SteveM]

I personally would love to go there if a seeding opportunity came up.
Jeremy, that was my understanding too: more lights than darks

The stage is set for a knight in shining armour to arrive in Manihiki?maybe those lighter colored pearls could be marketed as the ?transition? between FP and SS, potentially with the appeal of both?

 

[Josh]

We have the lighter colored pearls here too but the problem with lights are that (apart from having less color - duh - ) they are invariably lower in quality. The darker the lot, the higher the % of A (AAA) grade pearls.

I think the Cook Islanders should have their own rules and label of quality. If they play it smart they could brand their pearls as more expensive than Tahitians. All they have to do is take the cue from our friends in the Sea of Cortez and learn what not to do from us Tahitians.

 

[SteveM]

Josh,

Yes, you've got the vision! I think however that just as with Sea of Cortez it's going to be an individual farm, with its own brand (ie Kamoka?) that makes or breaks such a future. BTW I found some temperature/salinity readings and variances of Manihiki Lagoon from 1996 and 2000, temperatures pretty much in the normal tropical range (28.5/30). Shall I forward?

 

[Slraep]

I think the Cook Islanders should have their own rules and label of quality. If they play it smart they could brand their pearls as more expensive than Tahitians. All they have to do is take the cue from our friends in the Sea of Cortez and learn what not to do from us Tahitians.

Yah but, Sea of Cortez pearls REALLY ARE RARE and from a different and REALLY RARE mollusc. Cook pearls are from the same mollusc as Tahitians, so besides some variation in colour depending on different lagoon conditions, what exactly is it that would make them rare enough to brand and sell more expensively? Not much, I dare say. Yes, I double dare say.

Slraep

 

[Josh]

Steve, yup those are the same temps we have in the Tuamotus though in the Gambier islands it's a little cooler. I am definitely interested in those readings though because in the summer (Oct, Nov, Dec, Jan) of '98-99,' we had 32 degrees or over. We lost 95% (!!!!) of our live coral and over half of our beautiful Tridacnas. The oysters took a hit of course but nothing like the coral and the big clams.
Slraep,
What makes them different is that they are not from the same place. If they are farmed in a different part of the Pacific they pretty well HAVE to have some different nuances in color. I think that that is special and worth shouting about, don't you? Is "rare" really the end all, be all?

 

[SteveM]

Josh, am traveling but will look up and forward that study upon return Monday.

Re differences Tahiti/Cooks you beat me, was thinking of the analogy to our wine business, ie Cabernet Sauvignon from Bordeaux vs. Napa, etc.

 

[Slraep]

Slraep,
What makes them different is that they are not from the same place. If they are farmed in a different part of the Pacific they pretty well HAVE to have some different nuances in color. I think that that is special and worth shouting about, don't you? Is "rare" really the end all, be all?

True, they are from a different place, but by that logic, every other different place that cultures SSs should be designated "rare" too. What about all the different places around the Philippines that culture SS pearls? What about the different places around Vietnam that culture SS pearls? Should each local insist their pearls are rare? What about Burma(Myanmar)? Indonesia? Malaysia? Australia? One lagoon kilometres from another produces slightly different colours---should they be marketed as rare? What about FWs from the same mollusc coming from northern and southern China? Which one is rare?

Just asking.

Slraep

 

[Slraep]

Re differences Tahiti/Cooks you beat me, was thinking of the analogy to our wine business, ie Cabernet Sauvignon from Bordeaux vs. Napa, etc.

Hi Steve,

Don't they use a different grape for each of those wines?? I would agree that Cook Island pearls be rare if they used something other than P. maxima for culturing.

Slraep

 

[SteveM]

Cabernet is among the most ubiquitous of grapes, given its fame from Bordeaux. But it is a noble grape, and there are noble environments outside of Bordeaux that nurture it to greatness and individuality. But the great sea of Cabernet Sauvignon in the world is mediocre at best, for sure, given the commercial motivation behind its use, irrigation techniques, and other sustainability issues in common with pearl farming.

My term for the concept would be nobility: Accepting that P. Margaritifera and P. Maxima (among the others) are noble shells, then we must look for noble environments, noble farmers, and finally noble marketers able to communicate the totality of the message. This comes under the heading of 'individual farm branding' mentioned above, as certainly a far more efficient approach than waiting for the Cook Islands authorities to get their act together!

 

[Josh]

Thanks for the micro wine lesson and beautifully lucid post Steve.
Slraep, I don't know about P. maxima in the Cooks but I was talking about P. margaritifera, the one Tahiti has in common with our cousins from the West.

 

[Slraep]

Sorry, I meant the black lip, P. margaritifera. That's what happens when you try to string and write at the same time.

The word "rare" should maybe be reserved for use to describe something that not every corner jeweller has in their display case.

Slraep

 

[DFrey]

I like the analogy to wine production Steve and in a more general way you and Josh are discussing provenience as an important part of marketing and in some cases value. This may not be important to all people but I think it can add to the pleasure that some enjoy from owning a pearl that has a story. Identifying provenience of course becomes more difficult and maybe less important for mass marketing of products.
Personally I'm all for "romancing" the pearl and knowing the 4 W's who, what when and where of what you are buying or selling.

DFrey

 

[SteveM]

DFrey, good points. But there must be a demonstrable difference in the product, and the question in this thread, rightly posed by Slraep, is whether this is a possibility. Manihiki and Penrhyn are the world's most isolated pearl source (ever read the back of a bottle of Fiji water?) and as such should have something to say. But I'm the first one to point out that this is mainly conjecture at this point, awaiting the advent of an individual farm willing to make the necessary moral commitment.

Something tells me that some element of Cook Islands pearling will need to latch on to golden poe pipi as a national identity. For that reason I personally would promote the tendency of Cook Isands farms to produce the lighter colors. The first farmer on Manihiki in the 1960/70s, Peter Cummings, was reputedly successful in the production of large, brilliant gold/silver/greens, a promising beginning lost to disaster and inconsistency since.

 

[Slraep]

Something tells me that some element of Cook Islands pearling will need to latch on to golden poe pipi as a national identity. For that reason I personally would promote the tendency of Cook Isands farms to produce the lighter colors. The first farmer on Manihiki in the 1960/70s, Peter Cummings, was reputedly successful in the production of large, brilliant gold/silver/greens, a promising beginning lost to disaster and inconsistency since.

Poe pipi! Now we are talking rare! Try to find those at your local(or unlocal)jeweller.

I think you are right Steve, the Cooks should go with the light colours of gold, silver and green. The silvery sage greens are gorgeous!

I do whole heartedly agree that better labelling of where pearls come from and who cultured them is a plus for the consumer even though the pearls themselves may or may not be rare. Yes, like wines.

Slraep