As you likely know, it’s not just the energy industries pushing for “green” and “sustainable” rehauls. Diamonds have also gone green. Or at least they tried before going completely bankrupt.
The Financial Times reports that WD Lab Grown Diamonds, the second-largest US producer of manufactured diamonds, has officially filed for bankruptcy. The Times describes it as “the sector’s first big casualty of a burgeoning glut of fabricated gemstones.”
But as those selling “genuine” gemstones say, the collapse was only inevitable.
Basically, WD Lab Grown Diamonds helped to grow a rapidly expanding industry that just got way too big, way too fast. And all in the name of sustainability.
For as long as you or I can remember, diamonds have been controversial. While they have long been attributed as a symbol of status, with the only wealthy having diamonds in any real sort of mass, environmentalists and “climate change warriors” claim that they are causing a detriment to our planet due to mining and the efforts needed to cut and shape these exquisite gems.
The solution, naturally, was to create nearly exactly the same stones but without mining, no ties to conflict or slavery, and in a way that was “sustainable.”
The idea was a hit, and the industry immediately took off. But like most things that overproduce, the companies that made these lab-grown diamonds had to start accepting lower prices as they became too popular and almost common. You know, the basic Econ 101 concepts of supply and demand.
The Times noted that “diamond prices for a single carat have crashed more than threefold in seven years as manufacturers continue to flood the market.”
However, it’s also worth noting here that part of the issue is that while these “sustainable” gems are cheaper and “greener,” most consumers aren’t all that willing to buy what many see as “a fake” for their loved ones, especially when it comes to engagement rings and such.
The summary: sustainable isn’t really all that sustainable, and people just aren’t interested in going green…
