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When the partnership ends on 22 April, the dual label on gold, silver and platinum will gradually be phased out and replaced with the recognisable FAIRTRADE mark only, creating a more consumer-friendly label.
It is hoped that the move will also help increase jeweller participation in the Fairtrade gold scheme and bring maximum benefits back to miners.
Fairtrade International and ARM jointly launched Fairtrade and Fairmined gold in the UK in 2011, closely followed by launches in other global markets. Both partners in the pilot project shared a common vision to create better conditions for artisanal and small-scale miners (ASM), and the partnership successfully brought about empowerment of miners’ organisations, raising awareness of issues in the ASM sector and providing businesses with a traceable source of responsibly-mined and fairly-traded gold.
Fairtrade International said that the decision to separate the labelling process for gold came following an extensive review of the current system, in which the market clearly called for a simplification of the existing Fairtrade and Fairmined label to facilitate market growth. It also comes at the natural end of a three-year pilot partnership with ARM.
“We are very proud of our achievements in the mining sector to date,” added Chris Davis, head of producer services (Africa and Middle East) at Fairtrade International. “Going forward, the two partner organisations hope that by working more independently, yet co-operating wherever possible, we can make greater progress towards further improved terms of trade for disadvantaged miners in the future.”
Both partners will phase out the dual label through 2013, but continue to offer respective label certification programmes separately.
