What About That Blue Tag on Japanese Pearl Jewelry?

Does it mean the highest quality?

The Japanese Pearl Exporters Association’s idea was to promote Japanese pearls and to increase sales. This is known as the Cultured Pearl Quality Inspection and Tag system or the System for the Quality control and the Labeling of Cultivated Pearls. Pearls that are evaluated if they pass the test they will be get a tag. Each strand will be issued a separate inspection tag. What does it mean?

Here are the qualities that cause the pearl to not get a tag:

Nacre so thin that the core nuclei can be seen through the nacre.

Extremely low luster.

Excessive amounts of blemishes.

Visible cracks in the nacre or on the nuclei.

Damage from bleaching or dyeing

The tag doesn’t prove that the pearls are grown in Japan.

The JPEA Inspection Tag does not mean:

The pearls are cultured in Japan

The pearls are top grade

Each pearl that passes inspection receives a tag

The pearls are of any better quality than those without tags

The JPEA Inspection Tag does mean:

The pearls are not damaged or cracked

Nacre is thick enough to cover the nucleus

The pearl is not destroyed by bleaching or dying

The pearls are of a minimum acceptable quality

In summary the tag only signifies that the pearls passed these basic guidelines. The tag does not signify grade or type of pearl jewelry. And lastly the tag doesn’t even prove the pearl jewelry was cultivated in Japan. The tag is put on Chinese freshwater and akoya pearl jewelry, Tahitian Pearl Jewelry, and South Sea Pearls from Australia, and South Sea and Tahitian pearl jewelry from the Philippines.

So don’t be misled by some companies claiming that they have the best quality Japanese pearls.

What About That Blue Tag on Japanese Pearl Jewelry?