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Today, jewelers who want to ethically source gold rely on supplies of recycled metal, like Hoover & Strong’s “Harmony” metals. But thanks to efforts by the Association for Responsible Mining, the industry will soon also be able to source fair trade gold produced by artisanal and small scale miners in developing countries.

This month, ARM will open a new gold supplier called Ethical Bullion Company at www.ethicalbullion.com. Ethical Bullion will offer gold from small-scale miners in South America as 18k gold wire and sheet and 24k gold casting grain. Participating miners will have a percentage stake of Ethical Bullion and share in the profits through a miner’s fund.

Although pricing had not yet been set at press time, the premium over commodity gold is likely to be less than 10 percent. Like coffee and other fair trade products, the premium should decrease as volume increases. During the 2008 pilot project, the association will test different pricing models. The premium may be a fixed amount per gram rather than a percentage.

The gold is not yet certified fair trade gold. It comes from six fair trade pilot projects sponsored by ARM in Colombia, Bolivia, and Peru. The projects are expected to produce 20 to 25 kilos of gold in 2008.

Rather than wait for official fair trade status, which is expected in 2009, ARM decided to begin offering the gold from the projects this year as “ethically sourced” gold. When the projects receive certified status, buyers will pay the premium and a royalty which will be invested back into developing more fair trade mines.

“The ultimate objective for us is to offer the jeweler a one hundred percent transparent supply chain that is audited for all the commodities they need,” says Greg Valerio, the association’s vice-chairman, who also owns a retail jewelry brand in the United Kingdom, Cred Jewellery. “Jewelers shouldn’t have to compromise their integrity.” He says that ARM eventually plans to certify diamonds, gemstones, and other metals.

ARM has worked with all the stakeholders to create a standard for certified fair trade gold and associated precious metals called “Standard Zero,” which addresses independent certification and chain of custody, occupational health and safety issues, mercury abatement, environmental management, and labor issues. For more details on Standard Zero, visit www.communitymining.org.