Ethical gold rush: Why brands now seek guilt-free jewellery
PARIS: Forget how many carats — how ethical is your gold? As high-end consumers demand to know the origin of their treasures, some jewellers are ensuring they use responsibly sourced, ecofriendly or recycled gold.
Specialised producers now tack a “fairmined” ecologically friendly label on their output, and the Swiss house Chopard last year became the first big name to commit to “100% ethical” creations.
The Geneva-based firm says it uses only verified suppliers of gold that meet strict standards to minimise negative environmental impacts of mining the precious metal.
Among the many certificates and standards claiming to codify “responsible” goldmining, two labels stand out. They are “fairmined” gold and the more widely known “fairtrade” label.
Both support artisanal mines that seek to preserve the environment in terms of extraction methods, along with decent working conditions for the miners. Such production remains limited — just a few hundred kilograms annually. Global gold output by comparison totals around 3,300 tonnes.
Jewellers are keen to ensure they can trace the source of their entire supply to an ethical production cycle and to firms certified by the Responsible Jewellery Council, which has developed norms for the entire supply chain.
The French luxury group Kering, which says it has bought over 3.5 tonnes of “responsibly produced” gold since 2015 for its Boucheron, Pomellato, Dodo and Gucci brands, has committed to 100% use of “ethical” gold by 2020.
Fairmined or Fairtrade gold is about 10 to 12% more expensive. But recycled gold barely generates any additional cost premium since it was already refined for a previous life in the form of jewellery or part of a high-tech product.
“We do not want to promote mining extraction or use recently extracted gold, so we sought suppliers who recycle gold used in graphics cards or computer processors,” says brand Courbet’s co-founder and artistic director. “Clients also demand an ecological approach — they are aware of their day-to-day impact and consider the origin of what they wear,” she adds.
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from Europe News Headlines, Latest Europe News and Live Updates - Times of India http://bit.ly/2XyVbQy
Specialised producers now tack a “fairmined” ecologically friendly label on their output, and the Swiss house Chopard last year became the first big name to commit to “100% ethical” creations.
The Geneva-based firm says it uses only verified suppliers of gold that meet strict standards to minimise negative environmental impacts of mining the precious metal.
Among the many certificates and standards claiming to codify “responsible” goldmining, two labels stand out. They are “fairmined” gold and the more widely known “fairtrade” label.
Both support artisanal mines that seek to preserve the environment in terms of extraction methods, along with decent working conditions for the miners. Such production remains limited — just a few hundred kilograms annually. Global gold output by comparison totals around 3,300 tonnes.
Jewellers are keen to ensure they can trace the source of their entire supply to an ethical production cycle and to firms certified by the Responsible Jewellery Council, which has developed norms for the entire supply chain.
The French luxury group Kering, which says it has bought over 3.5 tonnes of “responsibly produced” gold since 2015 for its Boucheron, Pomellato, Dodo and Gucci brands, has committed to 100% use of “ethical” gold by 2020.
Fairmined or Fairtrade gold is about 10 to 12% more expensive. But recycled gold barely generates any additional cost premium since it was already refined for a previous life in the form of jewellery or part of a high-tech product.
“We do not want to promote mining extraction or use recently extracted gold, so we sought suppliers who recycle gold used in graphics cards or computer processors,” says brand Courbet’s co-founder and artistic director. “Clients also demand an ecological approach — they are aware of their day-to-day impact and consider the origin of what they wear,” she adds.
Making sense of 2019 #ElectionswithtimesView Full Coverage[1][2][3][4][5]
References
from Europe News Headlines, Latest Europe News and Live Updates - Times of India http://bit.ly/2XyVbQy
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