Making A Difference With Fairtrade Gold
Gold has been mined for thousands of years, and for an estimated 100 million people who work in small scale mines it is their lifeline, a way to support their families and help their community. However while there is a continuous fight for working conditions, miners all over the world are still subjected to long working days in hazardous conditions. Being the little guy at the end of a complex supply chain means they barely see any return for their work. Here at Dytham Jewellery Designers we are proud to be one of the only companies so far in the Newcastle area to be able to offer Fairtrade Gold, meaning the people who do the mining receive a guaranteed Fairtrade Minimum Price and a Fairtrade Premium for their product.
Being Fairtrade certified means we can guarantee the source of the gold used in your jewellery as its traceable right back to the individual mining community. Gold certified to Fairtrade Standards provides small-scale miners and their communities in developing countries the opportunity for better living and working conditions. Visit Fairtrade.
What is Fairtrade Gold?
Fairtrade Gold was launched in 2011 and supports miners in South America to get a better deal when they sell the gold they work hard to collect. This also helps them on their way to getting out of poverty.
To be able to sell Fairtrade Gold the artisanal and small-scale mines must meet Fairtrade Standards regarding health and safety, workers rights and help preserve the environment around the site. FLOCERT independently audit the mines and once the criteria has been met the miners can begin to benefit from the Fairtrade Minimum Price and Fairtrade Premium.
Once it’s on the move through the international supply the gold is kept separate from other ores on its journey to keep its integrity, being tracked by FLOCERT at every stage keeping the supply chain transparent.
Why buy Fairtrade Gold & what are the benefits?
Not only does buying Fairtrade Gold help the miners but the whole community around them. They can invest the extra money into improving the water supply, or healthcare, it also means the families can feel more secure as they can invest the Fairtrade Premium into improving the water supply or healthcare. Becoming Fairtrade certified also means the children have access to education. The alternative was the children being available to work in the mine. One of the most important improvements that can be made with the extra money is the working life for the miners, as they can invest in better and safer equipment so their health isn't as at risk as it used to be.
How do I know that my metal is Fairtrade Gold?
If you buy jewellery that has been created using Fairtrade Gold it will be marked with the Fairtrade Stamp alongside your hallmark. This is to show that it has been produced according to the Fairtrade Standard and can be traced back to a Fairtrade Certified mine.
Selecting the metal
At Dytham Jewellery Designers we can make jewellery into Fairtrade Gold. With time we hope that we can also make jewellery using other Fairtrade metals, Fairtrade are working hard to bring more mines into their system but it can take up to 5 years.
If you want to take a look at the difference between golds generally there is more information below:
