As reported by Rapaport News, the organisation recently hosted a public awareness event, where it offered to scan passengers’ jewellery to determine whether their pieces contained natural or lab-created diamonds.
AWDC CEO Karen Rentmeesters noted that natural and lab-created diamonds look identical to the naked eye.
“Anyone who does not know the difference therefore risks buying a jewel with synthetic diamonds while paying the price of a natural-diamond jewel,” she said.
Belgium introduced a royal decree in 2023 requiring jewellers to provide documentation specifying a diamond’s characteristics, including its weight and whether it is natural or lab-created. However, Rentmeesters indicated that many retailers frequently disregard these regulations in practice.
David Clarinval, Belgium’s minister of employment and economy, has proposed regulations that would require sellers and advertisers to label lab-grown diamonds as synthetic.
The proposal would also limit the use of the term diamond without modifiers to natural diamonds.
“Anyone buying a diamond must know exactly what they are purchasing. Today, however, there is still too much confusion in the diamond sector,” he said.
“This is a matter of transparency for consumers and fairness toward our diamond sector.”
Belgium’s proposal aligns with similar measures implemented internationally, including the 2018 US Federal Trade Commission ruling and recent initiatives in France and India.
More reading
Diamond jewellery promotion raises ethical questions
Jewellers survey highlights consumer confusion around diamonds
Lab-created diamonds are in fashion
Seismic shifts that will shape jewellery retail for the next 40 years
The Great Diamond Debate III: Passion vs Tension
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