Chinese Pearl Farming Update for 2021

From our friends in China, unable to post the information directly due to Pearl-Guide being actively blocked in this Asian country:

Pearling News:
​

The Chinese Government is PROHIBITING businessmen to CONTINUE TO invest in freshwater pearl farming in lakes, river upper from this year onwards.

Freshwater pearl farms on lakes and rivers are to gradually become dismantled in order clean this valuable resource UNPOLLUTED.

Freshwater pearl farms have been cut down to just one hundred, from an original number of one thousand farms. Therefore, production of freshwater pearls will become much smaller in the years to come.

However, Akoya, Mabe and south sea pearl farms are being encouraged to grow.

Vigor He
Bigwell Cultured Pearls
Minsheng Import & Export Co.,Ltd

NOTE: I edited the text a bit for clarification, but more relevantly, we have a couple of questions

1. What will this mean for the availability of freshwater pearls?
2. If saltwater pearl production increases dramatically, what will this mean for pearl productions elsewhere?

Interesting times...

 

From our friends in China, unable to post the information directly due to Pearl-Guide being actively blocked in this Asian country:

Pearling News:
​

NOTE: I edited the text a bit for clarification, but more relevantly, we have a couple of questions

1. What will this mean for the availability of freshwater pearls?
2. If saltwater pearl production increases dramatically, what will this mean for pearl productions elsewhere?

Interesting times...

View attachment 456638​

An update thanks to AI:
Yes. The core claim in the 2021 Pearl-Guide post was that China was restricting freshwater pearl farming in lakes and rivers for environmental reasons, reducing the number of farms and potentially shrinking freshwater pearl supply. [(21) Chine...-Guide.com]

Based on more recent reporting, the situation has evolved:

What appears to have been correct​

Environmental regulation did have a major impact on production. Recent industry sources state that Chinese freshwater pearl output fell sharply from historic highs as environmental rules targeted polluting aquaculture practices. [grokipedia.com]

What happened afterward​

Rather than disappearing, the industry adapted.

• China remains the dominant producer of freshwater pearls worldwide. Recent reports describe Zhuji, Zhejiang, as producing roughly 70% of global freshwater pearl output. [news.jewel...erynet.com], [news.jewel...erynet.com]
• Farmers increasingly shifted toward cleaner, more sustainable cultivation methods and higher-quality pearl production. Industry and gemological sources describe advances in breeding, environmental management, and farming technology. [grokipedia.com], [igc-gemmology.org], [igc-gemmology.org]
• Several regions now actively promote pearl farming as an environmentally integrated aquaculture system. In 2025, the FAO recognized the Deqing freshwater pearl mussel farming system as a Globally Important Agricultural Heritage System, highlighting its fish-mussel co-culture model that helps maintain water quality. [fao.org], [bjreview.com]

Availability and prices​

The prediction of tighter supply was partly borne out:

• Industry reports note significant increases in freshwater pearl prices since 2023, driven by limited production of certain qualities and strong demand. [agta.org]
• However, the market did not collapse. Reports from 2024-2026 describe continued large-scale production, improving quality, and ongoing global sales growth. [news.jewel...erynet.com], [news.jewel...erynet.com], [news.jewel...erynet.com]

What about saltwater pearls?​

The 2021 post wondered if China would dramatically expand Akoya, Mabe, and South Sea production. More recent sources indicate growing investment and innovation in Chinese pearl production overall, but I did not find evidence that saltwater pearls replaced freshwater pearls as the dominant sector. Freshwater pearls remain China's principal pearl industry. [news.jewel...erynet.com], [news.jewel...erynet.com], [grokipedia.com]

Bottom line​

The 2021 concern was directionally accurate: environmental policies did reduce freshwater pearl farming in some traditional waters and contributed to lower production and higher prices. But the latest evidence suggests the industry adapted rather than declined permanently. China is still the world's freshwater pearl powerhouse, with a stronger emphasis on sustainability, technology, and higher-quality pearls than before. [(21) Chine...-Guide.com], [grokipedia.com], [news.jewel...erynet.com], [fao.org]

One particularly interesting update for a pearl student: the environmental reforms that looked like a threat in 2021 are now being presented as a competitive advantage, with Chinese producers emphasizing cleaner water, heritage farming systems, and improved pearl quality. [fao.org], [news.jewel...erynet.com], [igc-gemmology.org]