Buying and selling gold jewelery extracted in mines that respect workers’ rights and reduce dangers, in addition to being an ethically right action, can become an advantage for marketing. Think about it: would you rather buy a jewel that cost the life of some underpaid miner or, with a minimal difference in price, gold that respected all civil rights? Fairtrade gold is the equivalent of fair trade for food. This reasoning is pushing numerous jewelry brands to specify the ethical origin of the material used and, in particular, of the gold. And ethical provenance, in addition to being laudable, also proves to be a powerful marketing tool.
Fairtrade, says the presentation text, «offers a lifeline for artisanal and small-scale miners and their communities. Our passion is to see transparency, traceability, truth and justice in the living conditions of millions of artisans and small-scale miners around the world. Small-scale miners work in remote, marginalized and harsh conditions, doing life-threatening work. They are constantly exploited by brokers and their access to markets is limited and they rarely receive a fair price for their gold.” In short, the association tries to bring some balance to a world dominated by large mining multinationals.
In recent years, the membership of around a hundred jewelers and gold artisans in Great Britain, for example, has brought the miners 100 thousand dollars in the form of bonuses. Those who join Fairtrade can purchase gold and silver ethically certified by five master licensees. Gold is semi-processed into sheets, wire, tube or grains. The annual consumption limit is 500 grams of gold or platinum, or 2 kilograms of silver. According to Reena Agarwal, coordinator of the association, «it is a great moment for small jewelers. The ethical jewelery market is growing rapidly and the Fairtrade mark is the most widely recognized certification worldwide. Fairtrade has a strong brand profile.”
In short, fair trade gold can also be an advantage in terms of sales. «Fairtrade for gold and precious metals is a very innovative initiative, offering a lifeline for poor, small-scale miners around the world. It’s the best way to communicate the benefits of responsibly sourcing metal to customers. In addition to registered jewelers, we also have 50 licensees for the purchase of large quantities of gold, who are authorized to stamp their jewellery”, adds Reena Agarwal, as reported by the Professional Jeweler website some time ago.
