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A U.K. Sunday Times investigation last week found that several jewelry pieces sold on Amazon and TikTok contain illegal—and possibly dangerous—amounts of the metal cadmium.
Cadmium is commonly found in e-waste, says U.K. jewelry consultant Jayne Bond, who first brought the issue to the Times’ attention.
“What happens is they refine the metal,” she tells The Jewelry Wire. “Cadmium is a silver-colored metal, so they use it as cheap fill.”
But cadmium is considered a carcinogen that can affect wearers’ kidneys, liver, lungs, and bones. While there’s long been concern about cadmium in children’s jewelry, the Times made clear that it can affect adults, too.
“It’s one of the most potent metals to cause toxicity,” molecular ecotoxicology professor Christer Hogstrand told the newspaper.
The legal limit for cadmium in jewelry in the U.K. is 0.01%. The Times found some pieces sold on the sites contained 33% cadmium—3,300 times the legal limit. Those pieces were advertised as containing .925 (92.5%) silver.
While the U.S. has no federal limits on cadmium in jewelry, states like California say that jewelry items must not contain more than 0.3% cadmium.
Bond became interested in the subject after she sustained a minor injury caused by a faulty phone charger she bought on Amazon. She decided to investigate its jewelry practices, too.
“Amazon’s first line is defense: we’re a marketplace, deal with the person who sold it to you,” she says. “I thought, ‘Hang on a minute. How does it work in the jewelry business?’”
When she brought one ring advertised as silver to the Birmingham Assay Office, she found it contained 92.3% cadmium and notified Amazon.
The item, however, was not taken down, Bond says—nor were several others that she found contained high level of cadmium.
Bond shared a note that Amazon sent her, which said her concerns have “been raised with the relevant teams internally for further investigations and unfortunately, will not be able to add additional insight regarding this matter.” (The company did not return a request for comment by press time.)
Eventually, she says, one piece was taken down, but she believes that there are many pieces containing high amounts of cadmium still for sale.
She claims that Amazon can’t claim it’s just a marketplace in this instance, because it “lists the products, bills for the items, and in some cases, stores them in its warehouses.”
She also found several other items with high cadmium levels on TikTok, but when she notified the company, they were taken down. Still, in some cases, she thinks they have been put back up.
“It’s like playing whack-a-mole,” she says.
Bond says she intends to keep at it, noting she’s been investigating this for a year. “I’m not going away,” she says. “I’m like the Duracell bunny.”
Meanwhile, the New York Post reports that panicked buyers are buying “detox pills” to ward off any harmful effects they may have received from cadmium exposure. Ironically, they’re buying them on Amazon.
Waco jeweler charged with buying stolen jewelry
Michael Wayne Habern Jr., 53, the owner of Waco Jewelers in Waco, Texas, has been charged with knowingly buying stolen jewelry, according to a press release from the United States Attorney’s office for the Western District of Texas.
According to the DOJ, Harben and associate Clemond Earl Busby would meet “in the parking lot of Habern’s store” to buy the jewels.
It claims:
At times, the robbers would allegedly negotiate transactions with both Busby and Habern. At other times, the indictment alleges, Busby would act as an intermediary between Habern and the robbers.
On one or more of the occasions, Busby and Habern allegedly received stolen jewelry from the robbers with price tags still attached and sometimes in display cases that were also taken from the jewelry stores during the robberies.
The indictment alleges that Busby and Habern would pay the robbers less than the true value of the jewelry and exclusively in cash.
Habern and Busby have been charged with one count of conspiracy to launder monetary instruments, nine counts of accessory after the fact, and one count of misprision of a felony.
De Beers’ second-quarter production rises 88%
De Beers reported today that its second-quarter production was 88% higher than the prior year, mostly due to higher-grade ore at its mines.
However, it admitted the market still remains challenging:
The geopolitical and macroeconomic landscape remains uncertain, with the onset of the conflict in the Middle East adding to economic and consumer confidence risks. Synthetic lab-grown diamonds also continued to affect demand for lower-value natural diamonds adding pressure in more price-sensitive categories. However, stronger pricing for higher-value goods supported a stable overall average price index throughout the period.
The average realized price declined by 32% to $105/carat, due to a higher percentage of lower-value goods in its sales mix and a 16% decrease in its price index.
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Your view on … the De Beers brand
John Hardy chair Jan-Patrick Schmitz wrote in regarding my thoughts on the value of the De Beers brand:
You are right that the brand will not help small mom and pops directly, but it would indirectly if played right. The problem is that De Beers never managed to launch as a brand effectively.
They looked at successful high-end jewelry brands, put London under their name, and opened a few expensive stores. That copycat strategy cannot work. You will always be a bad copy of an original.
If they found their unique voice and brand persona and built their brand based on THEIR brand DNA, they would be mighty successful. That said, it takes a clear brand playbook, patience (= capital), a high degree of discipline, and money. Look what we did [at Richemont] with Montblanc—we built a maison that used to sell at Office Depot. The halo effect of a strong De Beers brand business would be meaningful for the stone business, and, by extension, for small mom-and-pop stores.
That they don’t perform is self-inflicted, not proof that it is impossible.
Quote of the day
“Watches and Wonders, it’s like a bubble. You are all there together admiring the so-called luxury. It’s a small elite of people. … And what is the impact on the hundreds of millions of people in the world? Frankly speaking, nothing. It was boring. Why should they be interested, all the young people in the world, apart from a general status discussion? What’s the innovation?… It’s always the same, the last tourbillon, the newest tourbillon, the 200 complications.”
—Swatch Group CEO Nick Hayek, on the most recent Swatch conference call
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Today’s jewelry links cover Chow Tai Fook, Leading Edge Group Jewellers, Chaumet, Paris High Jewelry Week, Reinhold Jewelers, Kiki McDonough, Amy Winehouse, Zendaya, and more.
Company news
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Chow Tai Fook says sales rose 15% in last quarter (PR)
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Parent company of Leading Edge Group Jewellers collapses into administration (Jeweller)
Diamond news
- Scientists think it rains diamonds on Saturn (Space Daily)
Fashion and design news
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Tanzanite is having a moment (Prestige Online)
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Chaumet unveils collection with traceable gold (LVMH)
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Five trends to watch from Paris High Jewelry Week (JCK)
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Yves Piaget’s lifelong passion for roses is reflected in Piaget’s watches and jewelry (New York Times)
Gold news
- U.S. sanctions Rwanda gold refinery (BBC)
Retail news
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How Kiki McDonough, jeweler loved by royal family, built business on £5,000 loan (The Times)
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Reinhold Jewelers on the power of relationships (My Next Question; video)
Watch news
- The watch industry’s hidden sustainability advantage (WatchPro)
Miscellaneous
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The reopened Louvre gallery doesn’t have jewelry in it (Reuters)
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A look back at Amy Winehouse’s jewelry looks (Tatler Asia)
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The debate over Iranian jewelry worn by Zendaya (New York Times)
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The end of the penny is a rounding challenge for retailers (Retail Dive)
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Five pieces of cursed royal jewelry (Vanity Fair)
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Florida student creates jewelry that can detect date rape drugs (News4Jax)
Have a comment or news tip? (We love news tips!) Leave it below or email rob@thejewelrywire.com
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