Reflective Images, a jewelry store in Santa Fe, N.M., has received the first U.S. shipment of Fairtrade gold from U.K.-based Cred Jewellery.

“We are so excited to be sending the USA its very first shipment of Fairtrade gold,” said Cred Jewellery director Alan Frampton. “This shows there is demand worldwide for the best accredited supply of gold.”

Fairtrade gold receives an independent accreditation from Fairtrade.org that guarantees the gold has been responsibly mined. It comes at a 10 percent premium to ensure fair payment to workers. As Rob Bates wrote in in the May 2013 issue of JCK, Fairtrade gold has been slow to popularize in the U.S., though in Europe it has a considerable consumer base. 

Cred supplies Fairtrade gold to jewelers throughout Europe, South Korea, Canada, and Australia, including more than 160 licensed jewelers in the U.K.

In 2003, Cred Jewellery and Oro Verde worked together to develop transparent supply chains for gold that were adopted as the Fairtrade standard in 2011.

JCK