The Responsible Jewellery Council (RJC) has launched a new Laboratory Grown Material Standard (LGMS) aimed at setting a benchmark for ethical and sustainable practices in the lab-grown diamond and coloured gemstone sector. 

The LGMS covers all aspects of responsible business practices – from legal compliance and management systems to due diligence, human and labour rights, and working conditions. It also includes health and safety, appraisal and grading, disclosure and environmental management, among others.

Each RJC member will have to document and implement technical requirements that impact every step of the process to reduce risks and vulnerabilities in a company’s supply chain and make a positive impact for workers and communities, with the end goal of ensuring that the integrity of each lab-grown gemstone is preserved.

“Our mission at RJC is to promote responsible business practices from laboratory or mine to retail,” said RJC Chairman Dave Meleski. “With the LGMS, we are not just setting a standard; we are setting a vision for a future where elegance and ethics go hand in hand. We believe that every diamond, whether mined or lab grown, can be celebrated without compromising our values.”

For the first year after its release, the LGMS will be voluntary for existing RJC members. It will then become mandatory for all members handling lab-grown materials after this initial phase, according to RJC.

As part of this initiative, the RJC will also implement optional training and educational modules along with streamlined auditing processes, making it easier for those who deal with both lab-grown and natural materials to adhere to both the LGMS and the existing Code of Practices (COP).