We farmers lack excellent technicians...
I appreciate your candor, Mr. He. It's my wish for your continued success.
Perhaps the best technicians don't want to share their knowledge (secrets)?
The greater part of pearl farming is common knowledge, however very few technicians are portable, even if they have the freedom to go wherever they please. Pearl farming is largely site specific. In my area, results vary widely from bay to bay. There is no possible way that even the finest technician from anywhere else could come to this area and immediately council me on the nuances of each. Likewise, I'd be a fish out of water on any other sites outside of my realm of experience.
Presently, a pearl technician is a birthright, selective or exclusive occupation. I'm as guilty as the next guy on this, but at the every least it's my focus to educate youth who are willing to learn and see, not flip them off as potential threats. In recent times, I'm seeing an increasing number of kids with wide-eyed enthusiasm on anything marine oriented. I'm often taken aback by the intelligent questions they'll pose and make no bones about responding with honest answers. It gives me to hope, to see other have hope, not just for pearl farming, but for the huge potential for biomedical research and environmental assessment.
While we see a multitude of groups representing sustainability, marketing, fashion etc., there are no organizations or peer review groups solely pertaining to technicians.
We cannot effectively rely on government, universities or research facilities to resolve the problem without some serious revisiting of how many producers operate. The issue lies squarely on farmers themselves. There can never be any educational programs unless farmers become a lot more forthright about discussing ways of improving common knowledge issues and arriving at a consensus for an educational curriculum. Nobody suggests anyone should give up proprietary information, but the overall levels of protectionism have not served the industry well. We only need to look at the Japanese model to understand. Once a mighty force in pearling technology, Japan rebuilt itself after near decimation from WW2 only to follow a different path of self destruction. Initially, laws had prohibited anyone from speaking to foreigners about pearling technology. Those laws have been long since repealed as unenforceable and needless. Japan enjoyed many years of profitability but drove it's own industry into the ground by over-production and poor environmentalism. I began pearl farming research while Mikimoto and Latendress were effectively colluding a monopolistic stranglehold on nuclei production and it went on for many years during my work. I have the highest respect and admiration for Japanese farmers as individuals, but garner little sympathy for the "tragedy of the commons" enabled by their government and short sighted corporations.
On the other hand, I appreciate many farmers spend considerable effort and expense improving their viability. It stands to reason they'd guard their technology. That said, in a competitive world these things ought to be treated as a sprint, not a long haul.
Once the cat is out of the bag, it's better to care for it cooperatively than to deny it exists or stuff it back in for the sake of other bagged cats. Many technicians are obligated contractually to work for one farmer, but not another. Equally, many technicians don't allow the farmer to attend their own grafting shed during the operation. Again, not giving an inch makes moving forward impossible. In fact, most technicians will never be invited to attend most farms because they fear they'll steal technology, when in reality they're probably missing out on learning something new.
Old habits die hard.
