Ethically Sourced Tahitian Pearls: An Interview With Josh Humbert

Introduction:

Josh Humbert, runs an exemplary pearl farming operation in Tahiti, using methods that actually benefit the environment.

He was recently featured in an article in JCK Magazine.

We caught up with him at the ethical producer manufacturing meeting run by Bill Galleger at the Tucson Gem Show. This follow up interview was conducted via email by Marc Choyt and Greg Valerio.
~ Marc Choyt, Publisher

FTJ: First, let’s start with the most immediate concern. What was the impact of the recent typhoon on your operations?

Josh: The island where the farm is, got hit pretty hard, but we were inside the lee of the land so the water came up high but there were no waves which are the most destructive element.

FTJ: How many people do you employ, and what is the volume of your production? In terms of pearl production in Tahiti, would you be considered a small or medium operation?

Josh: Not including myself we are boiled down to five people now on the farm. We are definitely a small operation whereas we used to be more medium sized.

FTJ: We hear a lot of horror stories about the impact of pearl farms on the environment. In large scale operations, what typically happens?

Josh: I think the horror stories people hear are more from freshwater farming. In Tahitian pearl farming, there is pollution that can come from large scale operations in the way of galvanized metal coming apart in the water, but even that is very limited. To suspend the oysters we use ropes and buoys which are made of plastic which is relatively inert. The main issue we have been active in changing in our atoll is the way the large farms used to clean their oysters.

FTJ: What separates your process from other pearl farmers? Environmental practices?

Josh: The way that we clean our oysters is pretty unique. We put them in zones where the fish populations are strong and the fish nibble off the fouling from the oysters. What’s fun about that is that there are a million things that grow on the oysters from anemones to corals to sea mats, etc, etc and basically there is a fish species that corresponds with every kind of fouling. The end result of this cleaning is that it strengthens entire fish populations — not just one to the detriment of others. We are helping to restore the lagoon to the state that it was at before man came to the island.

(Josh works with an oyster while his mentor looks on)

FTJ: What is the conventional method?

Josh: Basically, high pressure water hoses are used, which blasts everything back into the water, creating an explosion of different creatures, in particular anemones. If you cut one into ten pieces it turns into ten organisms. Blasting with water hoses triggers species that the environment has a hard time assimilating.

Since we’ve started and been vocal about it, a large number of farmers have followed our lead and are not cleaning their oysters that way. You don’t need an expensive machine—you just have to get the oysters to where the fish are and then take the oysters back to where they were previously.

FTJ: In the meeting, you were talking about fair trade or ethical pearl production. What are some of the reasons you think that your operation would qualify, as opposed to other operations?

Josh: An isolated pearl farm is a lot like living on a sailboat. Harmony between members is critically important to a healthy working environment and for producing beautiful pearls.

We pay for our teams social security which often doesn’t happen in the smaller farms. Contrary to what most would like to think, the industrial farms are actually pretty good about this. We also respect the number of hours in a day that we are supposed to work, we feed our crew, we house them and also pay the costs (like gasoline) to support after-work activities like sports or fishing.

We also use nuclei that come from our own oysters as well as the close cousin of our oyster, the Australian Pinctada Maxima. We were the first farm in Polynesia to use these nuclei that are recycled from the oyster shells we farm. The really cool thing that came from that was the increase in A (top) quality pearls that came from it.

One of my mentors, Yvon Chouinard of Patagonia, once said that every time he did the right thing for the environment he made a profit. I love that.

FTJ: What about the wages you pay employees and the length of time that they have worked for you?

Josh: The longer people stay with us, the more they are paid which is not always the easiest situation at months end when times are lean. Our resident grafter (pearl technician) Timi Tehaai was actually our first worker. The average time our crew members have been with us would be around ten years. When you are good to your people, they are good to you.

FTJ: What are the channels of distribution you have in the US and in the UK? How can people get your pearls?

Josh: People can support the retailers that support me who are listed on my website. Shipping is difficult from Tahiti because of the over-the-top costs but I expect to work out a solution for that later this year. We currently have a purchase minimum of USD $2,000 and we sell only wholesale for now.

FTJ: How many Oysters do you farm? And what does this mean in terms of numbers of pearls per year?

Josh: We have held a quota of about 100,000 first graft operations per annum for years but in 2009 we struggled to break 30,000.

FTJ: Is your business a logical extension of your lifestyle/philosophy for living?

Josh: I feel that it is. I love what I do and I love the people I work with. It might sound crazy but I think people can sometimes sense that in our pearls.

(A beautiful strand of ‘A’ Grade Kamoka Tahitian Pearls)

FTJ: What do you think a fair trade pearl should be and contribute to the livelihoods of the local community in Tahiti?

Josh: A fair trade pearl should come from a production that looks after it’s people and the environment it occupies. A fair trade pearl should also be paid for what it is worth. I would hope that it would allow local communities to make a living which it’s essentially not doing any more.

“One of my mentors, Yvon Chouinard of Patagonia, once said that every time he did the right thing for the environment, he made a profit. I love that.”

FTJ: What is your greatest aspiration for the Tahiti pearl farmers?

Josh: Making a living from producing pearls. Production has been down all over French Polynesia about 80% for over two years now. There’s very few people still hanging in there.

FTJ: Given that you seem to be attracting more farmers in Tahiti to work the way that you do, how do you think your business model can grow and multiply?

Josh: The challenge is not to farm the pearls, it’s to sell them which is no longer possible at a fair price in Tahiti.

FTJ: What is the biggest threat to traditional pearl farming in Tahiti and where does it come from?

Josh: Lack of organization of the industry. We have to come together; and with our government, protect the farmers from price driven buyers. There also needs to be some heavy sanctions for frauds who ship pearls to market in Hong Kong. For years there have been black market “goods” there that were exported illegally with no export duty paid and no quality control.

To contact Josh or learn more about his operations, visit his website at: http://www.kamokapearls.com/

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