On conflict diamonds: what a responsible buyer actually needs to know

“Blood diamond” is a term most buyers have encountered, but few understand precisely. The concept is used broadly — sometimes to mean diamonds from conflict zones, sometimes as a general indictment of the mining industry, sometimes to encompass any diamond whose supply chain is not fully transparent. The imprecision makes the question harder to answer than it should be, and it leads some buyers to conclusions that are either too cautious (refusing all natural diamonds regardless of origin) or not cautious enough (accepting any Kimberley Process certificate as a clean bill of health).

The specific meaning of conflict diamond

A conflict diamond, in the original and precise definition, is a diamond mined or traded to finance armed rebellion against a recognised government. The term emerged primarily from conflicts in Sierra Leone, Liberia, Angola, and the Democratic Republic of Congo in the 1990s and early 2000s, where rebel groups used diamond revenues to fund devastating civil wars.

The Kimberley Process Certification Scheme, established in 2003, was designed to interrupt the flow of conflict diamonds by requiring member countries to certify that rough diamond exports are conflict-free. Approximately 85 countries are Kimberley Process participants, covering the vast majority of global production and trade.

Where the Kimberley Process works, and where it does not

The Kimberley Process has largely succeeded at its original, narrow objective: the documented flow of conflict diamonds to organised rebel groups has been substantially reduced since the scheme was implemented. This is a genuine achievement.

The criticism of the Kimberley Process — and it is legitimate — is that its definition of “conflict” is narrow. It does not address diamonds mined under conditions of labour exploitation, environmental degradation, or government violence against civilians that falls short of recognised civil war. Zimbabwe’s Marange diamonds, for example, were certified under the Kimberley Process despite credible documentation of serious human rights abuses in their extraction.

What additional protection looks like

For buyers who want stronger assurance beyond Kimberley Process compliance, there are verifiable options.

Canadian diamonds are produced under strict federal environmental and labour standards, with individual stone tracking that allows traceability to the mine of origin. The Canadian Diamond Code of Conduct and independent certification bodies provide documentation that goes well beyond Kimberley.

Botswana, Namibia, and South Africa produce significant volumes of diamonds under conditions that are broadly considered responsible by international standards, with government partnerships that direct a meaningful share of revenues into public services. These are not perfect situations, but they are substantively different from the worst-case scenarios the term “blood diamond” conjures.

Lab-grown diamonds sidestep these questions entirely — they have no mine, no supply chain in the traditional sense, and no association with the conflicts or conditions that the ethical sourcing debate addresses. For buyers for whom this is the primary consideration, lab-grown is the cleanest available answer.

My position and practice

I buy stones through suppliers who work within the Kimberley Process and who can, when asked, provide origin documentation that goes beyond the basic certificate. For clients who ask specifically about ethical sourcing, I can direct stone sourcing toward Canadian production or other documented ethical origins. This adds some lead time and sometimes cost. It is always available to clients who want it.

I do not think a buyer who purchases a natural diamond without extraordinary origin documentation is making an unethical choice in 2026, provided they buy from a reputable supplier working within the established certification framework. I do think that buyers who want to go further have meaningful options to do so, and I am glad to support that where I can.

For a full comparison of natural and lab-grown diamonds across all relevant considerations, read Natural diamonds, lab-grown diamonds: what I recommend, and why.