Editor’s Note
This article examines the profound challenges facing Japan’s storied Akoya pearl industry, a sector synonymous with luxury for over a century. As environmental and economic pressures mount, the future of these iconic gems hangs in the balance.
U.S. jewelry experts highly regard Japan’s specialty Akoya pearls as the ‘Rolls-Royce of pearl oysters.’ However, the Akoya oyster farming industry is now facing an existential crisis. A U.S. newspaper reported from Ago Bay in Mie Prefecture, a major production area for Akoya pearls.
Classic strands of perfectly round white pearls, beloved by fashion icons like Audrey Hepburn and Jacqueline Kennedy. For generations, they have remained a symbol of ‘understated elegance.’
The timeless beauty of ‘Akoya pearls,’ treasured worldwide, is born in the calm, intricate waters of Ago Bay. Its inlets provide the optimal conditions for Akoya oyster growth.
But the 130-year-old pearl industry in Ago Bay now faces an existential ‘double crisis.’
One is rising seawater temperatures weakening Akoya oysters, making them more susceptible to lethal viruses. The other is the difficulty in finding successors for the many small-scale, family-run farms, leading to an aging producer population.
Akoya oysters are carefully nurtured by farmers using techniques passed down through generations. After artificial fertilization and hatching in tanks, the juvenile oysters are transferred to the sea.
Farmers regularly check the oysters’ condition, monitor water temperature, and ensure a healthy growing environment is maintained. After another two years, the pearl harvesting season finally arrives.
However, this entire process is becoming increasingly unstable each year. Farmer Takeuchi Akihiro lost 80% of his juvenile oysters in 2019 to an unexplained infectious disease.