Fairtrade Gold vs Regular Gold – a Comparison for Jewellery

Sotrami Gold Miners, Peru, Image credit Eduardo Martino

Sotrami Gold miners, Peru. Photo credit Eduardo Martino.

Today’s post is meant as a short update to increase awareness of the changes we have made to the price of Fairtrade Gold over regular 18ct Gold on our website.

Earlier this month, we decided to level the price of regular 18ct Gold jewellery, to match the more expensive Fairtrade Gold option….. But why?

We realised that many people, unaware of the benefits of Fairtrade Gold, purchase regular 18ct Gold instead – often because of the lower price. Perhaps the reason is sometimes a lack of awareness or understanding.

As a manufacturer / retailer, we pay a slightly higher price for Fairtrade 18ct Gold over the price of regular 18ct Gold, making it a more expensive product, like most Fairtrade products.

The additional premium ensures that small scale miners and their families receive a higher price. This benefits the miners, their families and their communities.

Fairtrade Gold, miners benefit from a guaranteed Fairtrade Minimum Price and Premium ($2,000/kg) which can be invested in developing their business or in community projects including education, clean water supplies and child care and education.

Becoming Fairtrade certified and meeting Fairtrade standards for gold helps miners structure and improve their mining and business practices. This includes strict standards on working conditions, health and safety, handling and disposal of chemicals, women’s rights, child labour and environmental protection.

Items now crafted in Fairtrade Gold are matched to the existing cost of regular 18ct Gold.

We suggest allowing 4-5 weeks to create your Fairtrade Gold commission as a guide to timescale if you are considering this option.

About Mark Johnson

My name is Mark and I'm founder at Serendipity Diamonds. By day you'll find me working in our showroom—in a variety of roles. My work (which I love) ranges from photographing jewellery, to writing blog posts and helping clients with my colleagues Drina, Emily and Debbie.

About Mark Johnson

My name is Mark and I'm founder at Serendipity Diamonds. By day you'll find me working in our showroom—in a variety of roles. My work (which I love) ranges from photographing jewellery, to writing blog posts and helping clients with my colleagues Drina, Emily and Debbie.