Gemfields urges focus on ‘mine of origin,'
rather than country of origin, to boost traceability
Sean Gilbertson, CEO of Gemfields, providing an overview of the coloured gemstone market during the 2023 CIBJO Congress on October 3 in Jaipur.
OCTOBER 3, 2023
Gemfields, a leading industrial miner of rubies and emeralds in Mozambique and in Zambia, called for a focus by downstream market players on the “mine of origin” rather than country of origin in order to boost traceability.
Gemfields has released transparent data on its supply chain from mine to auction, CEO Sean Gilbertson said in a presentation on the first day of the CIBJO Congress.
“We need to move to a ‘mine of origin’ model, not the country of origin,” Gilbertson said.
“If you don’t know which mine it (a gemstone) came from, don’t buy it.”
Gilbertson also spoke of Madagascar which he said had published figures showing a low export value of its gemstones.
Prices of both rough rubies and emeralds had been rising due to a combination of tight supplies of high-quality goods and rising demand, Gilbertson said.
He said that prices of the precious gemstones had been firm despite an increase in mining output in recent years.
In separate presentations, David Tait, CEO of the World Gold Council (WGC), speaking by video link, urged accelerated efforts to raise standards and move towards greater sustainability in the global jewellery sector.
Marco Carniello, jewellery show director of the VicenzaOro trade fair in northeast Italy, spoke of strong growth of Vicenzaoro since 2017, which has seen an increase in the number of exhibitors and the variety of its offering to the global trade. The next edition of Vicenzaoro will take place from January 19 to 23, 2024.
Marco Carniello, jewellery show director of the VicenzaOro trade show addressing the 2023 CIBJO Congress.