Lab-grown and natural diamonds are often presented as a simple either/or. In reality, the choice is more nuanced.
This piece sets out the facts, common misconceptions, and trade-offs - without pushing one option over the other. There is no single right answer.
The Science
Structurally, elementally, and chemically, the diamonds are the same. I could almost stop there, as that is about all you need to know.
I will, however, point out that they are not identical.
Natural diamonds (carbon) develop over millions of years under incredible pressure and temperature in the Earth’s mantle. At some point, these chunks of carbon are forced to the surface through volcanic movement. On this mammoth journey, they pick up dirt and get quite roughed up. By the time they reach mining level, there’s a very mixed bag of diamonds on offer. This ‘dirt and damage’ causes inclusions (faults in the stones) and variations in colour. The presence of these sometimes very unusual inclusions is one of the key defining features of natural diamonds. Some argue these are a fault; others argue they add character.
Meanwhile, in a factory, a diamond ‘seed’ sits being heated and squeezed to absurd levels in a press. Once the right conditions have been reached, a lab-grown diamond is formed. Whilst science has made it possible to replicate the bare bones of the natural diamond-making process (heat and pressure), it’s not possible to recreate the unique environments that natural diamonds are pushed through. In effect, lab-grown diamonds have had a very cushty start to life and have not been exposed to nearly as much as their natural counterparts.
I must add that lab-grown diamonds do still have inclusions, but these are the result of variations in manufacturing conditions or foreign particles becoming mixed into the process.
The ethics
2006 saw the release of the film Blood Diamond which famously and rightfully shone a light on the abhorrent state of the diamond industry and its links to funding civil wars and violence. If we look further back into history the diamond mining industry has flouted slavery laws, been responsible for hazardous and lethal working conditions resulting in numerous undocumented or covered up deaths and countless other human rights violations.
The introduction of the Kimberley process in 2003 was a major turning point for the industry, with the certification scheme aiming to stop ‘conflict diamonds’ entering the mainstream market and minimise the ties and funding to conflicts.
I will be frank in saying that this scheme has not been completely watertight. If there are laws in place there are always people willing to break them. There have, over the years, been instances of conflict/blood diamonds being smuggled across borders and mixed with ‘mainstream’ diamonds. The regulations have got tighter and tighter and now the majority of diamonds in the developed world markets are Kimberley approved and indeed, conflict free. I myself only work with certified Kimberley scheme diamond dealers and am of the opinion that anyone who doesn’t is missing a moral compass.
In recent years we have seen a big push on fair trade mining and reinvestments to local areas which has led to the introduction of ‘traceable from source’ certified fair trade diamonds, whilst these are more expensive, they are more environmentally conscious. Free education and healthcare for families of miners have been rolled out in many areas and a living wage is now being paid in many mines that were previously associated with slave labour. It is not anywhere near perfect, but it’s definitely improving.
The rapid development of the lab-grown market also brought about a rapid growth in them being referred to as the ‘more ethical’ diamond. Lab-grown diamonds have not been used to fund wars nor do they have a dark and long history relating to slavery and mining accidents. There is no argument that they win on that front.
They are not, however, completely ethical. There do exist some ethical factories which also tend to be more environmentally conscious however many factories are in developing countries where documentation of working conditions is not mandatory meaning it is incredibly difficult for suppliers to trace a stone and its ethics right back to the source. I (and most other jewellers) cannot guarantee there isn’t any forced labour, exposure to harmless chemicals, living wage issues or human rights violations in association with lab-grown diamonds. Until that day comes, no one can really say that they are all ethical.
The environment
You don’t need to know much about the environment to understand that blowing a giant crater into the ground isn’t exactly ‘eco-friendly’. The actual mining isn’t great either… To save me going into the heaps of detail on the effects of mining, this is a good data lead paper on the impact of mining diamonds across the world. https://www.imperial-consultants.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/Final-report-Environmental-Impacts-of-Mined-Diamonds.pdf
Similarly to the ethics debate, lab-grown diamonds get a relatively easy ride when it comes to talking about their environmental impact. There’s no big hole in the ground, no wildlife displacement and no soil erosion therefore they're absolutely fine, right? Alas, there’s quite a big case of commercial greenwashing going on currently, and lab-grown diamonds are at the centre of it. To put it simply, recreating millions of years worth of pressure and temperature takes a lot of power, power that largely isn’t sustainable. A big majority of lab-grown diamonds are manufactured in coal powered countries meaning most of their diamonds have quite a hefty carbon footprint.
As I have mentioned previously, there are factories run on renewable energy sources and it could absolutely be said that they are undoubtedly better for the planet.
Unfortunately when there is a new, freshly greenwashed product with an unconfirmed public perception getting pitched against an existing product so marred by controversy and yet so deeply threatened by its new competitor, whoever sells and deals in each product doubles down on the sales tactics.
It has leaked beyond the industry further, if you were to ask the general populous which camp they’re in you would get a litany of biassed opinions. Bias depending on what matters to them or even who they bought their own diamond from.
Natural diamonds are vastly more expensive than lab grown diamonds making them slightly more ‘exclusive’ in the current public perception. However, lab grown diamonds have opened up a whole world of design opportunities for those who previously would never have had the option of a bigger stone.
If there were a clear answer as to which diamond is 'better', I wouldn’t have felt the need to write the aforementioned information.
Given the choice between an expensive classic car that has had some faults, you’re not sure where it came from, but is an absolute original; or a modern car - the cutting edge of technology - probably more efficient, considerably cheaper, but with less character… which would you choose?
It depends on what’s important to you.
When commissioning a piece, my role isn’t to steer you toward one option, but to explain the differences clearly and help you decide what aligns with your priorities - whether that’s, size, character, budget, or something else entirely.
