What is salmon gold? Mejuri launches fully traceable new material
Jewellery brand Mejuri is shifting the emphasis to ethical and sustainable gold with a new collection
Carefully considered designs and precious materials are a given when it comes to fine jewellery, but a new emphasis on traceability is causing brands to put a greater emphasis on just where all this luxury is coming from. For some, the solution is finding new ways to source gold entirely. Mejuri is one major jewellery brand leading the charge, creating a new collection in fully traceable ‘salmon gold.’
What is salmon gold?
‘We partnered with Regeneration by the NGO Resolve, a revolutionary start-up that uses re-mining and processing of waste from abandoned mine sites to support rehabilitation activities and restore natural environments, while attaining minerals such as salmon gold,’ Mejuri co-founder and CEO Noura Sakkijha tells us.
‘If left untreated, these abandoned mines pollute sensitive watersheds, ecosystems and native species. Regeneration is reversing the effects of past industrial demands, which altered the flow of rivers, disrupted natural habitats that were vital for the fish populations and left unsecured tailings. Salmon gold is an innovative initiative, sourcing gold from Regeneration-associated mines; gold that is fully traceable from its origins while also contributing to habitat restoration. It connects biodiversity and environment to our industry in a way that has not been done before.’
Bold Texture Huggie Hoops in salmon gold, £178, from mejuri.com
Fully traceable gold can be tracked from the mine to the market, ensuring fair and safe labour and ethical practices. Ambitiously, Mejuri hopes to extend this to all its materials by 2030. ‘Traceability allows us to understand what happens at every stage within the process to ensure we are making the right decisions for people, our planet and our product,’ adds Sakkijha.
The new material has been united with classic design codes for the launch, with a new collection of hoops marking the change. ‘The Bold Hoops are one of our most popular designs, given the way they segue seamlessly into the everyday, no matter what your own personal code of dressing. We think of them as the white T-shirt of jewellery.’
Receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories from around the world direct to your inbox.
Hannah Silver is the Art, Culture, Watches & Jewellery Editor of Wallpaper*. Since joining in 2019, she has overseen offbeat art trends and conducted in-depth profiles, as well as writing and commissioning extensively across the worlds of culture and luxury. She enjoys travelling, visiting artists' studios and viewing exhibitions around the world, and has interviewed artists and designers including Maggi Hambling, William Kentridge, Jonathan Anderson, Chantal Joffe, Lubaina Himid, Tilda Swinton and Mickalene Thomas.
-
A former fisherman’s cottage in Brittany is transformed by a new timber extensionParis-based architects A-platz have woven new elements into the stone fabric of this traditional Breton cottage
-
New York's members-only boom shows no sign of stopping – and it's about to get even more nicheFrom bathing clubs to listening bars, gatekeeping is back in a big way. Here's what's driving the wave of exclusivity
-
The diverse world of Belgian embassy design – 'style and class without exaggeration''Building for Belgium: Belgian Embassies in a Globalising World' offers a deep dive into the architecture representing the country across the globe – bringing context to diplomatic architecture