Australian Pearling Research

Professor Bernie Degnan, from the School of Biological Sciences, received $382,000 to understand and improve the quality of Australian South Sea pearls.

“Recently, mass-produced freshwater pearls from Asia have markedly increased in quality and begun to compromise our prestigious South Sea Pearl market,” Professor Degnan said.

“This presents Australian pearlers with a challenge to maintain market identity by improving their pearl quality and consistency. By adding genomics to the existing Australian pearl industry armoury we will help not only to maintain the premier position of the Australian South Sea Pearl in the market, but also to move it further ahead.”

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