[Abewsha]

Did you know that the vast majority of freshwater pearls come from China? If you are like me, you'd probably curious what Chinese freshwater pearl farms look like and want to learn more about cultured pearls.

Kevin Canning is the founder and president of Pearls of Joy. Kevin is very knowledgeable and keen on pearl education - the Learning Center on his website is a useful guide. He has kindly shared his fascinating pictures from a freshwater pearl buying trip so we can all enjoy another arm chair travel post. These pictures show the process from farm to market.
He's also a great photographer as you can see from this night shot of Hong Kong, his first landfall before making his way to the pearl farming region...

The pearl farms are mainly located in prosperous Zhejiang province which is traditionally known as the "Land of Fish and Rice" although its industries are greatly diversified today.

The pearl farms are actually rice farms. When the rice fields are not being used for crops, the farmers cultivate freshwater mussels. What they choose to grow depends on what makes more money for them at the time. Fish also grow in these waterways which is also another source of income. During the 2008 economic downturn, the farmers went back to growing rice and fish. Many of these small farms are family-owned. The farmers sell the pearls to big pearl factory companies..

Freshwater pearls are not bead nucleated i.e. no starter beads are used. Something like 30-40 little bits of mantle tissue from a donor mussel's inner lining are added to each mussel and can yield as many pearls - far more than saltwater oysters. That's why freshwater pearls are more affordable - there are more of them.
As the starter material is not round, freshwater pearls are thus seldom round - only 2% are round or near round. On the plus side, freshwater pearls are virtually all pearl nacre - the mussel's secretion to coat what it considers an irritant. This coating is the beautiful and elegant luster we all like about this gemstone.

Nothing is wasted. The mussel meat is either eaten by the farmers' families or sold to canning factories. The shells are made into mother of pearl shell beads and decorations. The leftover shells are crushed and used in construction.

Freshwater pearls exhibit a range of natural soft pastel colors. The factors which influence color are not known. But what is certain is consumer preference. North Americans prefer white pearls while Asians like a silvery color. Shown below is the drop dead gorgeous gem quality multi-color Presidential freshwater pearl necklace from Pearls of Joy.