An official of the Fisheries Bureau explained that when the industry was established, expectations were high, and many producers entered the line. This led coral fishermen to bring in larger quantities of low-quality material, and when the recession struck, demand plummeted.
當珊瑚業處於巔峰時，遠洋漁業正值不景氣，許多大型遠洋漁船加入捕撈行列；就在珊瑚數量日減時，這些大型漁船在北太平洋公海附近撈獲許多珊瑚，但多為白色珊瑚，品質欠佳，外銷困難，國內市場又有限，因此造成滯銷，再加上世界性的經濟不景氣，使珊瑚業一落千丈。外商壟斷原料，加工也不夠精細