Written by Bérengère Treussard - Monday, November 30, 2020
When the time comes to choosing a piece of jewelry or an engagement ring, when it comes to diamonds, it's hard to know how to find your way around, who to trust and how to choose. According to a study by OpinionWay* dating from January and June 2020, consumers find it very difficult to differentiate between the various denominations of diamonds and to see things clearly. How about you?
The study commissioned by the COLLECTIF DIAMANT** reveals that we all know what a
While according to this study, 65% of 25-34 year olds are considering buying a diamond; it is a matter of consumer protection to clarify the definition by using the terms of the law and being aware that some names can be very confusing and misleading.
Let's go back over the main points of the study to find out a bit more.
The French law is very clear about this subject:
The decree n° 2002-65 of January 14th 2002 stipulates that the mention "synthetic" is obligatory as soon as it is a stone whose manufacture is "caused totally or partially by man". The law also mentions that for this type of diamond "the use of the terms: "high", "cultivated", "cultured", "true", "precious", "fine", "genuine", or "natural" is prohibited".
There are currently seven different names for different types of diamonds that I propose to review together:
➢ natural: extracted from the mine
➢ synthetic / laboratory / lab-created: 4 denominations for diamonds industrially manufactured from carbon and reproducing the physical and chemical characteristic of natural diamond
➢ simile: industrially produced fake diamond that does not have the physical and chemical characteristics of natural diamond
➢ cultured: the cultured diamond does not exist. This term is sometimes used to designate, wrongly, the synthetic diamond. Please note that this term is prohibited by the decree of January 14th, 2002.
This study does not specify this, but you also have other terms that can cause confusion and be used when these stones are not diamond at all, even though they may look like it: Zirconium Oxide (not to be confused with Zircon which is a true gemstone) and Yttrium Aluminate ("Yage") which give rise to the following names: Diemlite, Gemolite, Blue River, Djevalite, Burmalite, etc...
According to the study, the term "natural diamond" is clearly perceived, "synthetic diamond" a little less. "Cultured diamonds", on the other hand, are ambiguous for the consumer.
The term "natural diamond": 90% of the consumers respond clearly that "natural diamond" is extracted from the earth and is the result of a natural formation process.
The term "synthetic diamond" refers, in the mind of the consumer, to a stone that does not come from the mine (90%) and is "artificial" (83%). But when interviewees are asked to spontaneously suggest a name for industrial diamonds there is little knowledge of the current terms: "synthetic" is only suggested by 26%, even though it is an industrial diamond.
The term "cultured diamond" is sometimes used - which is prohibited by the law- to refer to "synthetic or lab-grown diamonds" and is misunderstood. More than half of the interviewees - 55% - do not know what it means. Worse still, in a buying situation, 34% think they would buy a natural stone and 25% believe one extracted from the earth.
Young people are impacted, more than other generations, by this confusion. 39% of 25-34 year olds believe that "cultured diamonds" are "rather or completely natural", compared to 11% of those aged 65 years and over, while its manufacture is still industrial.
Questioned more specifically on the 7 different denominations mentioned above, only 75% of the interviewees, of all ages, associate the term "cultured diamond" with an artificial stone", against nearly 90% for the terms "simile / synthetic / lab-created diamonds" when in fact, it is the same thing.
THE natural process of pearl formation can mislead consumers.
11% of the interviewees think that "cultured diamond" is similar to cultured pearls ("diamonds in an oyster"). 34% believe that it forms naturally. However, under no circumstances can a diamond form like a pearl. An oyster, from which man has introduced a graft before plunging it back into the water basin, produces it. The pearl grows there for months, exactly as in its natural environment.
The use of the term "cultured diamond" induces a major risk of consumer error due to lack of clarity. While cultured pearls grow in their natural environment over a long period of time, this is not the case with synthetic diamonds that are created in the laboratory.
While "natural diamond" is clearly a valuable diamond in the consumer's mind, the names for other types of diamonds are less legible.
The "natural diamond", extracted from the mine, is unambiguously perceived as having the highest value (92%). On a scale of 1 to 10 in terms of low (1) and high (10) value, it is 9.1 and "synthetic diamond" between 3.4 and 3.7.
Between these two extremes, the value of the "cultured diamond" is perceived in a confused way and still confirms its ambiguity. The interviewees do not know exactly how to define this stone, they rank it in 2nd position behind natural diamond (high value 27%), far ahead of synthetic diamond. Young people, in particular, rank the value of different types of diamonds less well.
Clearly, there is a problem of consumer understanding of this denomination which can lead to an error of appreciation on the stone purchased, its real origin and value.
From an ethical and ecological point of view, "natural diamond" is considered the most ethical (55%) and the most ecological (55%) against respectively 21% and 19% for "synthetic diamond".
Precise figures on the carbon footprint of natural and synthetic diamonds are provided in the Trucost Study conducted in 2018.
This study also analyzes the human, economic and environmental impacts of the mining sector.
In a buying situation, the choice of natural diamond is motivated by the fact that it is considered a "real" diamond (67%) and that the synthetic diamond industry (the latter is manufactured in a furnace that generated 511kg of CO2 / carat cut), is energy intensive (32%). This data is one o the brakes on purchasing.
The choice of synthetic diamond is not made on ecological criteria as a priority. for 67% of the interviewees, the motivation to buy is linked to the lower price compared to the natural diamonds, followed by the ecological argument (no mining) at 46%. The last leading indicator is the fact that it is similar to natural diamond to the naked eye (28%).
In conclusion, the study underlines the need to respect the directive of decree n°2002-65 of January 14th, 2002 on terminology, which perfectly meets the need to guarantee clarity, legibility and understanding for the consumer in order to protect him and allow him to buy a diamond in all transparency.
I would add that you should always be careful when buying a diamond and I advise you to always obtain a certificate if you wish to buy a natural diamond. If you want to know more, do not hesitate to reread our star article: "
Do not hesitate to write to us either is you have any questions or doubts.
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*Methodology: the OpinionWay survey was carried out on a sample of 1001 French CSP+ aged 25 and over using the quota method, according to criteria of gender, age, CSP, region and size of town. Sample surveyed online using the CAWI system via OpinionWay's self-owned panel: Newpanel. Survey conducted according to ISO 20252 standards. Margin of uncertainty: 3.1 points at most for a sample of 1000 respondents.
** The mission of the COLLECTIF DIAMANT is to promote and enhance value of the natural diamond industry, inform on the evolution of the sector, encourage the improvement of industry practices and implement a program to promote diamonds on the French market. It is composed of the