In two years, if everything goes well, the oyster will create a white South Sea pearl whose price will be determined as a function of its size, shape, hue, surface condition and of course its lustre, which refers to the quality of reflection of the nacre layers. The pearl can be x-rayed to determine the thickness and form of the nacre. However, the pearl still may not meet the expected or required conditions. A long process Between the insertion of the irritant and the final harvesting of the pearl, there is a long and fastidious process that must take place at the enterprise's pearl farm at Terramar in Sharks Fin Bay located on the northern part of the island of Palawan. This model farm is one of four that are operated by Jewelmer.
Maintenance is a primordial element.
All the nets are cleaned every two weeks, says Clara Semilla, one of the farm's managers. More than a million and a half oysters live a few meters under the surface of some 5,000 hectares of ocean that Jewelmar uses for its farm. Six cleaning boats with five men aboard constantly make their way around this area, under the burning rays of the sun and sometimes even at night, to make sure the nets are kept clean. One by one, the flat nets containing the oysters are raised and carefully arranged in pairs before being passed through a machine that uses a water pressure of 300 bars to clean them. It is important to remove any algae or parasites that have deposited on the shells that may be a threat to both the oyster and its precious cargo.