De Beers Group announced yesterday it would start providing enhanced transparency regarding diamonds purchased from its Sight sales by introducing a “diamonds from DTC” (DTC = Diamond Trading Company) source of origin claim. Diamonds from the DTC come from mines and recovery areas in Botswana, Canada, Namibia and South Africa. The idea is to support the diamond trade by providing a factual statement about provenance that Sightholders and Accredited Buyers can use for diamonds purchased from Sights.
Starting with diamonds purchased at the third Sight of 2019, and subject to entering into a licence agreement, buyers will be able to apply the claim to their Sight-sourced diamonds and pass it on to their customers along the value chain. In turn, subject to meeting certain criteria, trade participants will be able to use the “diamonds from DTC” provenance claim across the value chain down to the consumer level, and will be able to provide assurance on its validity through certifying the claim under the Responsible Jewellery Council standards, or through an independent third party audit.
Bruce Cleaver, CEO, De Beers Group, said: “We are proud of where our diamonds are discovered, how we recover them responsibly and the role our activities play in building thriving communities. By enabling our customers to share the source of origin of our diamonds, we hope to drive further transparency throughout the diamond value chain.” De Beers claims, “The ‘diamonds from DTC’ provenance claim will offer greater significance than many other industry provenance claims, as it not only states corporate provenance but is also supported by the provision of sustainability performance and transparency information on each of the mines of origin.” De Beers has provided more information about those mines and the countries in which they are found via the new DTC website.
The site explains De Beers’ aggregation method, whereby diamonds are first sent to sorting centres in their respective countries, with the exception of Canada, from where diamonds are sent to Botswana. After the initial sorting process, all diamonds not already at DTC in Gaborone are shipped there to be aggregated and precise allotments created for customers. “Aggregation is an important and value-adding part of the process as, in order to meet customers’ requirements, rough diamonds are combined into precise categories and assortments based on colours, sizes and shapes, and the proposed specification of the diamonds in their polished form.”
NewsSource: TheDiamondLoupe
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