About Fair Mined Gold

I am a certified FairMined jeweler because FairMined Gold is making a positive impact on our environment, changing communities and saving lives.

About 5 years ago something exciting was introduced to the jewelry business – fair trade gold.

Prior to this new initiative, only large companies were able to get a good price for the gold that they sold. Now artisanal minders, who mine this precious metal using only the most basic of tools and equipment are able to be paid fairly for their mining efforts. Those who meet environmental and safety standards for their mining practices are now able to promote themselves under the Fairmined label.

Fair trade has been in operation for commodities such as coffee, olive oil, tea and avocados since the 1940s. Now that it’s possible to purchase gold under this fair trade approach, it makes for a much brighter future and nicer life for those involved in gold mining.  It also that you as a consumer are making a direct positive improvement in the lives of men, women and children in areas of the world where it is needed the most. 

Around 15% of all gold is mined by artisanal miners.
Artisanal miners may sound very artistic but in reality they are mostly people who live in impoverished areas where the economy is being driven by their income. Communities like this are all over the world and the lives of around 100 million people depend on these small-scale miners’ abilities to find gold and make a sale on what they find.

Prior to this initiative being put into place, these small-scale miners were not being paid in a fair way. Without access to larger markets, artisanal miners were forced to sell to a middleman who then went onto make good money from the miner’s hard graft whilst the miner walked away with what was practically a pittance.

Unfortunately, it’s not just the price of gold that is an issue for the artisanal miner, they have to contend with a number of other issues such as being exposed to  mercury.   Long-term damage can be done to the miners, the environment and their community.  The FairMined certification process teaches miners how to abstract gold without the use of mercury.

I am a certified FairMined Jeweler because I believe in the impact that it is making in our world.  This is a successful intuitive that is saving the lives of children, stopping the birth defects caused by mercury, improving the lives of communities and our environment.  I pay a premium for  FairMined gold, but you don't.  I charge the same for FairMined as if it were standard gold. If you love gold then you are going to love FairMined Gold.