Pearls are a precious aquatic product and occupy an irreplaceable position in my country's aquatic industry. The purpose of writing this article is to hope that colleagues in the fishing industry can work together to make my country's pearl industry develop better and faster.
1. China’s contribution to the development of the world’s pearl industry China is the earliest country in the world to discover and use pearls. According to the ancient book "Shang Shu Yu Gong": in the 22nd century BC, in the era of Xia Yu, pearls were identified As a tribute to the emperor, it dates back to about 4200-4500 years ago. China is also the earliest country in the world to artificially cultivate pearls. According to "Wenchang Zalu" written by Pang Yuanying of the Song Dynasty, it records in detail the founder and specific methods of artificial pearl cultivation in China: "Xie Gong, the minister of the Ministry of Rites, said there is a method of cultivating pearls... Take a little bit. Soak a large clam in clean water, wait for it to open, and quickly throw a pearl (with an artificial bead core - author's note) into it, frequently changing the water... After two autumns, it will become a real pearl." This record shows that China has artificially cultivated pearls 1,500 years ago. During the Southern Song Dynasty, Ye Jinyang of Huzhou used pleated crown clams to cultivate "Buddha elephant beads" with attached shells. This was another major invention in history and was praised by foreign scholars. It dates back about 900 years. The earliest record of artificially cultivated pearls abroad was by the Swedish naturalist Linne, who obtained a shank pearl in 1761, only 232 years ago, 1,200 years later than China.
The countries that produced pearls in ancient times were mainly China, Egypt, the Kingdom of Persia, ancient Greece and India. However, because the pearl yield rate of natural clams is very low (only one in 10,000), the output is very rare. By the 19th century, Chinese pearl culture was introduced to Japan in the late Qing Dynasty. In the 1940s, the Japanese pearl industry began to develop. In 1966, the number of Japanese pearl farms reached 7,000, with an output of 104 tons that year. According to relevant statistics, in the 20 years before and after this period, the foreign exchange income of Japanese pearls reached 2 billion US dollars, and the Japanese aquatic industry made an important contribution to the post-war national economic reconstruction. In 1969, Japan's pearl production reached 111.3 tons, becoming the highest annual production in history. Since then, due to water pollution and other social factors, pearl production has dropped sharply, with the annual output basically swinging between 30-40 tons. On the contrary, China's pearl production has increased sharply since the 1970s. In 1979, the world's pearl production was more than 60 tons, of which Japan's was 35 tons, China's was 25 tons, and their country's pearl production area was 3-5 tons. In 1980, the world's pearl production was more than 70 tons, of which Japan's was still 35 tons, while China's pearl production rose to 38 tons, surpassing Japan for the first time and ranking first in the world's production. In 1984, China's pearl production reached 117 tons, exceeding Japan's historical high production in 1969. In 1986, the annual output of rare spiders in Jiangsu Province, China reached 137 tons, which means that the output of one province in China exceeded Japan's highest historical output. After the 1980s, China's pearl industry entered a new stage of rapid development. According to authoritative statistics, China's total pearl output reached 2,027.4 tons in 1996 (including 2,002 tons of freshwater pearls and 25.4 tons of seawater pearls). It is also reported that the world's pearl production in 1999 was 1,262 tons, of which China accounted for 1,220 tons, accounting for 95 (including 1,200 tons of freshwater pearls and 20 tons of seawater pearls). Although the above statistics may be on the low side, and the data indicate that they are incomplete statistics, they still have important reference value. This statistical data fully proves that China has surpassed other countries in the world in pearl production for more than 20 consecutive years, becoming a veritable world pearl kingdom and serving the world. The development of the pearl industry has made important contributions.
2. Development trends of China’s pearl exports Before the 1980s, Chinese pearls were mainly exported. After that, especially in the 1990s, domestic sales also increased rapidly, entering a new era of simultaneous development at home and abroad. stage, here is a summary of China’s pearl export trends as follows:
1. Changes in China’s pearl export volume: In 1971, my country’s first export of Japanese pearls was only 0.6 kilograms, which rose to 11.738 kilograms in 1972 (4574 yuan per kilogram) , it was 608.5 kilograms (1663 yuan per kilogram) in 1974 and quickly rose to 6.5 tons (1981 yuan per kilogram) in 1977.
It was 11.4 tons in 1981 and 34.36 tons in 1985. In 1992, according to statistics from 31 customs across the country, China exported 699.4 tons of pearls, of which 345.51 tons were exported to Japan, accounting for 49.4, and 332.92 tons were sold to Hong Kong, accounting for 47.6, and the other 3 were sold America, Europe and Southeast Asia. According to a 1993 report by China Economic Information News: The United States imports about 30 tons of pearls (mainly Tambu pearls) from China every year, with a total value of US$150 million, of which high-end pearls cost US$1,800/kg, and pearls with a general particle size of 5 mm or more Very popular, low-end beads cost US$1,300 per kilogram, and are welcomed by middle- and lower-class consumers.
2. Trends in foreign exchange earnings from China's freshwater pearl exports to various countries and regions: According to statistics in 1989, except for Japan, which has no statistics, China's freshwater pearl exports have the strongest sales markets for foreign exchange: the United States, US$30,762, Germany, US$29,976, Switzerland US$25,135 and Hong Kong US$15,282.
3. Changes in China’s total pearl export value: In 1992, China’s total pearl exports were 699.4 tons, earning US$37.59 million in foreign exchange; in 1994, it exported 469 tons, earning US$148 million in foreign exchange; in 1995, it exported 485.4 tons, earning US$2.8 million in foreign exchange. billion dollars.
It is reported that the world's pearl output value in 1999 was US$5.4 billion, of which China accounted for US$380 million. Now compared with the total export surplus of aquatic products, according to the latest statistics released by the Fisheries Bureau of the Ministry of Agriculture (refer to "China's Fishery Economy" 》2003 Issue 2, page 11): In 2002, the total export volume of aquatic products was US$4.69 billion, the import volume was US$2.42 billion, and the actual surplus was US$2.27 billion. Since there is no data on the total export volume of pearls in 2002, direct comparison cannot be made. We can only make a relative comparison. That is, China's pearl export volume in 1999 was equivalent to 16.7 of China's aquatic product export surplus in 2002. This is a large ratio and fully illustrates the Pearls are an advantageous product for profitable export of aquatic products.
3. Development Trends of China’s Domestic Pearl Market and Related Enterprises China’s pearl market is widely distributed, but the focus is on the four regions of Zhejiang, Jiangsu, Guangxi, and Guangdong. The key points are summarized as follows:
1. Zhejiang pearl market development trends: The main production areas include Shaoxing area (mainly Shaoxing County, Zhuji, and Shangyu); Jinhua area (mainly Wucheng District, Jindong District, Wuyi, Yiwu, and Lanxi); Hangzhou area (Mainly Xiaoshan and Fuyang); Ningbo area (mainly Ninghai and Xiangshan); Taiwen area (mainly Wenling, Yuhuan, Yueqing); Quzhou area (mainly Longyou). In 1996, the province's annual pearl output was 304 tons, accounting for 14.9% of the country's total output. The largest and most influential pearl market in Zhejiang is Zhuji City. According to statistics in April 1999, there are 2,000 pearl companies in the city with 35,000 employees. Centered on the pearl market in Shanxiahu Town, the city has an annual output value of 3 billion. Yuan. In 2001, based on the market of the past 16 years, another 100 million yuan was invested to create a new "China Pearl City", with the annual turnover remaining above 3 billion yuan. In recent years, Zhuji has held many large-scale "Pearl Festivals" with unprecedented grandeur. Jinhua, Zhejiang is also a key pearl development area and has formed a joint system of education, scientific research and private enterprises. Driven by Zhejiang Jinhua Vocational and Technical College, Jinhua Weiwang Breeding New Technology Company and other units, in recent years, freshwater pearl cultivation has been carried out A series of scientific experiments have achieved phased results. In addition, in-depth research has been conducted on mussel disease, including the diagnosis, classification and name of mussel disease. Local experts also proposed for the first time the operating procedures for cultivating clams and the production process of cultivating clams. and grade standards for vaccinators. In addition, there are many pearl powder factories, pearl jewelry factories and clam breeding bases in Fenghua, Shangyu and other places in Zhejiang.
Wujin area in Changzhou City, Jiangsu Province is also an important pearl producing area. In 2002, 570 million pearl mussels were bred exclusively, and the processing value of pearl series products reached 215 million yuan.
In the past three years, Nanjing City, Jiangsu Province, has invested a total of 132 million yuan in developing the pearl industry. Liuhe County is an important pearl and clam breeding area. According to statistics in February 2001, the area for raising spider clams in the county reached 132 million yuan. 10,000 acres, with 20,000 people engaged in breeding, processing and sales. Several well-known pearl kings in the country, such as Jiangsu Xi Shengfu and Zhejiang Zhang Weijian, are engaged in pearl cultivation and production in the county. Others, such as the suburbs of Suzhou and Wujiang City, are famous pearl producing areas in Jiangsu and also have pearl markets of a certain scale.
3. Guangxi pearl market development trends: Guangxi is a key area for the development of sea pearls in my country. In 1996, it produced 11 tons of sea pearls, accounting for 43.30% of the country's marine pearls. The international market divides the world's pearls into three major categories, namely Western pearls, Eastern pearls and Southern pearls. Western pearls are produced in Western Europe (Italy, Spain and other places), Eastern pearls are produced in Japan, and Southern pearls are produced on the coast of Beibu Gulf in the South China Sea. of shallow sea areas. There is a widespread saying in the international market that "the West Pearl is not as good as the East Pearl, and the East Pearl is not as good as the South Pearl." The South Pearl is also known as the "King of Pearls in the World." The reason why Nanzhu is of high quality is mainly because the sea environment in this area is superior, the water technology is good, the temperature is suitable (the annual average temperature is 24°C, the average winter water temperature in January is 15°C), the sea bottom is good, the biological bait is abundant, and the harbor is It can be sheltered from wind and waves, providing unique conditions for the growth, reproduction and cultivation of pearl oysters. The seven natural pearl pools along the coast of Hepu and the Bailongwei Pearl Harbor in Fangcheng are the most suitable. According to scientific surveys, the water surface suitable for cultivating pearl oysters within the 10-meter isobath in this area reaches more than 250,000 acres. Nanzhu is a characteristic economic product of Guangxi that enjoys a worldwide reputation, and Hepu pearls have become the representative of Nanzhu due to historical reasons. Therefore, Pinctada martensii is also called Pinctada fucata (gouid). . Guangxi’s key pearl development areas also include Beihai, Fangcheng, Qinzhou and other cities. As far back as 1958, Guangxi established three pearl farms in Hepu, Fangcheng and Beihai. In 1982, it established the "Guangxi Pearl Company", later known as the "Guangxi Nanzhu Group Company", which integrates scientific research, production, processing and marketing. An 8-year-old auxiliary factory was established in 1994. Its assets have increased from RMB 1 million to RMB 120 million. Its products include four series of pearl jewelry, pearl medicine, pearl beauty products, and pearl health products, with more than 180 products. variety. Another enterprise, "Beihai Pearl Corporation", is also a comprehensive large-scale pearl enterprise. The "Nanzhu Palace" formed by it has a hall of more than 1,000 meters 2 to display and sell five series of Nanzhu products. In 1996, Beihai The city has also built a grand "China Nanzhu City" with an operating area of ??7,500 square meters. In recent years, Beihai City has held several "International Pearl Festivals", which have attracted attention and praise at home and abroad. In 1998, according to incomplete statistics, the output value of Guangxi's pearl products exceeded 200 million yuan.
4. Guangdong pearl market development trends: Guangdong Province is also the main production area of ??sea pearls in my country. In 1996, the annual output of sea pearls was 14 tons, accounting for 55.10% of the total output of sea pearls in the country. According to statistics in 1997, the area of ????sea pearl cultivation in Guanzhou was 3,300 acres, with an annual output of 16.382 tons of pearls, and an output value of 200 million yuan. Guangdong's pearl breeding farms are mainly located in Zhanjiang City. According to statistics in 1990, there are nearly 5,000 pearl breeding farms in the city for 1,000 years, and 450 million pearl mussels are stocked worldwide, with an annual output of 2.916 tons. According to statistics in recent years, the pearl cultivation area is 2,600 acres, with more than 200 pearl processing factories and more than 30,000 employees.
In addition to the above four key production areas, pearl production in other provinces, especially those in the Yangtze River Basin, has also developed rapidly, and corresponding pearl markets have been set up. Although Jiangxi Province produced only 55 tons of pearls in 1996, However, the development of some pearl enterprises has new scale and new characteristics. For example, the "Nanchang Pearl Crafts Factory" in Nanchang City, Jiangxi Province. According to statistics published from 1991 to 1993, the total output value reached 314 million yuan. The factory imported pearls from Italy. A set of hand jewelry processing equipment can produce more than 60 varieties of pearl chains of various colors, and later innovatively synthesized pearls with platinum, pure gold, and K financial products into a series of products.
Others, such as Anhui Province, produced 199 tons of pearls in 1996, ranking third in the country. Guichi, Anhui Province, is the "hometown of pearls" in Anhui. As of 2001, 300 million young clams were bred, and the water surface for cultivating pearls was 30,000 acres. There are 300 million hanging clams. The output of other provinces and cities is as follows: Hubei Province has an annual output of 124 tons, Hunan Province has an annual output of 77 tons, Shanghai has an annual output of 66 tons, and Jiangxi has an annual output of 55 tons. Each has a certain size of regional pearl market and pearl breeding area.
In addition to the above-mentioned professional pearl markets, there are also many urban jewelry stores across the country selling pearl jewelry. According to information released by Xinhua News Agency on May 28, 2002, by the end of 1999, there were 4,000 designated jewelry manufacturing enterprises and more than 20,000 individual manufacturing enterprises nationwide, with annual sales of jewelry (including pearls) reaching 80 billion yuan. .