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fairtrade.org.uk/gold

FairtradeAll you need to know to work with us

May 2014

Products courtesy of CRED Jewellery. Photography: Eduardo Martino and Samira Pecce

Contents

2 I want to work with Fairtrade Certified Gold – what do I need to do?

Overview – the process from start to finish

2a2b2c

What do I need to consider before registering? What do I need to consider before registering? What do I need to consider before registering?

How much does Fairtrade Gold cost?3

1

4Are Fairtrade Silver and Platinum available? What about other precious metals or stones?

What is the audit process?

How does the licence fee work and when will I have to start paying? 5

6

Products courtesy of CRED Jewellery. Photography: Eduardo Martino and Samira PecceProducts courtesy of CRED Jewellery. Photography: Eduardo Martino and Samira Pecce

Overview – the process from start to finish

Sign Licence Agreement with the

Fairtrade Foundation

Apply for product certification and artwork approval

Product certification

approval

Submit approved pieces to Assay

Office for marking with Stamp

Artwork approval

Start marketing

your certified pieces

Start selling certified pieces

Report on sales and pay licence fee to the Fairtrade Foundation

Complete annual audit process

Source suppliers and start developing

product

Complete Business Overview Questionnaire to register your interest

Read and understand the Fairtrade Standards www.fairtrade.net/

standards.html and product composition guidelines in

factsheet 2c

1

These steps take you through the process of working with the Fairtrade Foundation to sell Fairtrade Gold jewellery.

* Please note that throughout this document Fairtrade Gold is used to refer to Fairtrade Gold and associated precious metals.


I want to work with Fairtrade Certified Gold – what do I need to do?

2

Only businesses registered with one of Fairtrade International’s Labelling Initiatives and/or FLO-Cert can buy and sell Certified Gold, and use the Fairtrade Stamp on approved products.

If your company is not based in the UK, please contact Fairtrade International or the Labelling Initiative in your region for more information. Details can be found here: www.fairtrade.net/labelling_initiatives1.0.html

Before you register:Read the Fairtrade Standard for Gold and Precious Metals www.fairtrade.net/standards.html and the Standard for UK Operators on the business pages of our website.Read Factsheets 2a, 2b and 2c – What do I need to consider before registering? Factsheet 5 – How does the licence fee work and when will I have to start paying? Factsheet 6 – What is the audit process?

How to register:You will need to complete a Business Overview Questionnaire (BOQ). Please contact [email protected] for a copy.

On receipt of your completed form our Commercial Relations team will contact you to discuss the next steps. If your business is eligible to become a licensee of the Fairtrade Foundation, you will be sent a licence agreement.

! Please note: licence agreements are only issued to businesses that are dedicated to building long term relationships with Fairtrade mining groups. Please use the BOQ form to illustrate how you will integrate Certified Gold into your business and give clear details of your proposed supply chain.


What do I need to consider before registering?

2a

Suppliers of Certified GoldA list of the suppliers registered to trade in Certified Gold is available by emailing [email protected]. You can contact the suppliers to discuss price and availability of Certified Gold before becoming a licensee.

Please note: You must not attempt to buy Fairtrade Certified Gold or promote it to your customers until you have a signed Licence Agreement with the Fairtrade Foundation.

Proposed volumes of Gold and product rangesThese can be estimates but must include plans to fully integrate Fairtrade Gold into your business over time. You may wish to consider the following as a starting point:• Do you have existing designs to make in Certified Gold or will you create

a new collection? • How will you increase the amount of Certified Gold you use over time?• Is it possible to switch all of your gold to Fairtrade?

Fairtrade Certified Ecological Gold – Ecological Gold is mined in compliance

with the same Standards but requires the extraction of gold without the use of mercury or cyanide. In addition, it is produced under stringent environmental practices. For these extra requirements miners are paid the Ecological Premium. Please note: limited quantities of Ecological Gold are available.

1 2Fairtrade Certified Gold – mined in compliance with Fairtrade Standards

for gold from artisanal and small-scale mining. Available in large quantities.

There are two different types of Certified Gold

!



All products made from Fairtrade Gold must be approved by the Fairtrade Foundation before they are eligible to be punched/lasered with the Fairtrade Stamp.

All approved products must be punched/lasered with the Fairtrade Stamp by the Assay Office before they can be sold as Fairtrade Gold.

Check your products meet with our composition requirementsRead the product composition rules and guidelines in Factsheet 2c to ensure that your designs adhere to our product composition requirements. This includes important information on using pre-fabricated items (such as chain, coronets, earring backs) and the minimum volume of gold required.

Marketing and promoting Fairtrade Gold piecesAll packaging and promotional materials (including press releases and websites) relating to Fairtrade Gold must be approved in writing by the Fairtrade Foundation before they can be printed or communicated. This can take up to four weeks and must be built into your lead time.For your ease, a series of pre-approved marketing materials are available to download.

Applying for product certification approval for your Fairtrade Gold piecesBefore you can begin marketing and promoting your Fairtrade Gold pieces, you must have them approved by the Fairtrade Foundation. A product application form will be sent to you after you register.

2b

! Please note: It is your responsibility

to ensure that our packaging and promotional materials adhere to our FAIRTRADE Gold Mark Guidelines.



2c

The Certified Gold must constitute 100% of the gold used in the product.

1 2 Product composition rules shall assure that the Certified Gold is a significant component of the labelled final consumer-ready product.

The two essential rules

Product categories considered• Jewellery and semi-finished jewellery

components• Coins, ingots and bullion products of

commemorative and/or financial nature• Medals and trophies• Religious artefacts

Fairtrade Certified Silver (Ag) and Platinum (Pt)The use of Fairtrade Certified Silver (Ag) or Platinum (Pt) in gold alloys is voluntary and at the discretion of the manufacturer.

Jewellery containing pre-fabricated itemsWhere jewellery components cannot be fully sourced from a certified precious metal source, they are permitted to be used as non-certified metals in a final certified piece of jewellery as long as they are listed right:

• Earring scrolls• Catches (bolt rings, trigger clasps, swivels, bayonets)• Chain (as long as it does not exceed fifteen per cent

of the total precious content of the finished jewellery items

• Brooch backs, catches, joints and pins • Solder and alloys

Minimum caratage/fineness requirementsMetal: Gold (Au) – Requirement in labelled consumer products: Minimum caratage – 9 carats Metal: Silver (Ag) – Requirement in labelled consumer products: Minimum fineness – 800 Metal: Platinum (Pt) – Requirement in labelled consumer products: Minimum fineness – 850



2c

Hallmarking restrictionIf it is not possible to punch/laser the Fairtrade Stamp on your pieces, we are currently unable to certify them. The Stamp must be applied to the certified gold itself, and positioned close to the relevant fineness mark. If your piece is not eligible for a gold fineness hallmark, the Stamp cannot be applied.

Dos/Don’ts when completing a product application • Do feel free to list a range of stones options for one design.• Do indicate all components for each product: metals, stones, other, and all elements of a finished piece

eg. for an earring: include materials for earring front, pin, butterfly.• Don’t apply for different parts of a product separately e.g. earrings separate from butterflies, or chain

separate from catch.• Do indicate the gold in the caratage used for the product: 24ct, 22ct, 18ct, 14ct, 9ct.• Don’t split the composition of the gold alloy eg. Fairtrade Certified Gold 24ct + copper.


How much does Fairtrade Gold cost?

The cost of Fairtrade Gold at source

The Fairtrade minimum priceBusinesses buying Fairtrade Gold direct from certified artisanal and small-scale mining organisations (ASMO) are required to pay at least 95% of the daily London Bullion Market Association (LBMA) fix for pure gold content at FOB export point. This also applies to Fairtrade Ecological Gold.The Fairtrade PremiumIn addition to the Fairtrade minimum price, buyers also pay a Fairtrade Premium of $2000 kg/gold.For Ecological Gold, the Premium is 15% of the applicable LBMA fixing to reflect the Gold is mined without the use of chemicals. The Fairtrade Premium is democratically reinvested by the miners in community projects and improving operations.

3

The price of certified gold in the supply chain

Like all precious metal, once it enters the supply chain the price of processed Fairtrade Gold will differ depending on your chosen supplier and wider market fluctuations.It is worth noting that certified gold will always be slightly more expensive than conventionally produced gold as the miners are paid the Fairtrade minimum price and Premium.

The Fairtrade Standards do not set prices for gold within the supply chain.

The Fairtrade Standards do not set prices or margins for finished products.

The Fairtrade Standards set the minimum price and premium to be paid to the artisanal and small-scale mining organisation.

ASMO Processing/Manufacturing Licensee


Are Fairtrade Silver and Platinum available? What about other precious metals or stones?

Fairtrade Silver and PlatinumThe Fairtrade Standard was developed to create opportunities for economically disadvantaged artisanal miners and their communities. Gold was selected as the first metal to be covered under the scope of certification, primarily because of the large number of artisanal and small-scale miners that are involved in its production.The Standard does not cover silver or platinum mining, however it does recognise that silver and platinum are sometimes found as by-products of the gold mining process and as such, when these metals are found alongside the gold, they may be eligible for certification.

Certification of other jewellery materialsThe Fairtrade Foundation is currently developing a strategy for other mined products, which will continue to have artisanal and small-scale mining at its heart. The strategy will consider how Fairtrade certification could be extended to benefit artisanal and small-scale miners producing other metals and stones throughout the world. It is the licensee’s responsibility to procure the other materials used in their pieces from sustainable sources.

4


How does the licence fee work and when will I have to start paying?

All licensees are required to pay a license fee - the opening band starts with a fee of £1090/kg fine gold.

The introduction of the new Fairtrade business models will be accompanied by the introduction of a simplified licensee fee system. The opening band starts with a fee of £1090/kg fine gold and rewards higher volumes with fee discounts. Please contact [email protected] for more information on this.The Fairtrade Foundation is a registered charity, but aims to operate as a sustainable business. The license fee paid on gold products is used to fund:• Marketing and campaigner activity to raise consumer awareness of

Certified Gold• Work with our partners in the Fairtrade Labelling network to support

certified artisanal and small-scale gold miners; to develop and review the standards; and to bring more miners into the system.

• Certification to verify that products are traded in accordance with the Fairtrade Standards.

• Maintaining relationships with licensees, retailers, producers and other key business partners.

Reporting Requirements You will be expected to report on sales and volumes quarterly. You will have 30 days to complete and return the sales report to [email protected] when requested.• You will be invoiced a minimum of £25 every quarter• You will only pay license fee on products that you have soldThe license to use the Fairtrade Stamp is managed by National Fairtrade Organisations (NFO) in different countries. It is important that licensees inform the Foundation if they sell wholesale products overseas. The Foundation can then review this with the NFO alongside any packaging and promotional materials that will be used in that country.

5

! Please note: A minimum

license fee of £25 per quarter will appy from when you register as a licensee.


What is the audit process?

6

Please note: To maintain the

integrity of the Fairtrade system, any critical non-compliances with the Fairtrade Standards can result in suspension or termination of a company’s Licence Agreement.

! The audit process is a system which ensures that Fairtrade Standards are followed at each step of the supply chain, from the Fairtrade producer group (the mining organisation receiving the Fairtrade price and premium) through to the licensee responsible for applying the Fairtrade Stamp to the consumer-ready product.

How does the audit process work for a licensee?

All trading operators will be required to complete a Self Assessment Questionnaire once a year unless you are selected for a physical audit inspection.The questionnaire will allow the Fairtrade Foundation to evaluate your compliance to the standards through a series of questions regarding your operations and procedures.You will also be required to indicate the volume of Fairtrade Gold you have purchased, the stock of certified metal you are holding, and the number of finished pieces produced.On an annual basis, the Fairtrade Foundation will carry out a risk analysis to decide which licensees will receive a physical audit inspection during the year.Please contact [email protected] if you have any questions.

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