FTC Staff Rejects Jewelry Groups’ Request to Call Recycled Gold “Made in USA” Without Qualification

On September 9, 2014, FTC staff told jewelry industry groups that they could not issue an opinion saying unqualified “Made in the USA” claims for jewelry made from metals recycled in the USA do not deceive consumers.

The request

In a June 17, 2014 letter, the Jewelers Vigilance Committee asked for a staff advisory opinion. Manufacturing Jewelers and Suppliers of America, Jewelers of America, the American Gem Trade Association and Richline Group joined the request. The groups argued that refining recycled gold to almost 100% purity gives the metal a “new life cycle” and should give it a new, USA origin, wherever it was first mined.

What FTC staff said

• Under the FTC’s policy, an unqualified “Made in USA” claim requires that a product be “all or virtually all” made in the USA.
• Recycled jewelry is often of unknown origin, and gold and precious minerals are often mined outside the USA, so a recycled piece may well contain foreign natural resources.
• A December 2013 consumer survey submitted by Richline found that 57% of Americans agree that “Made in America” means all parts of a product, including any natural resources it contains, come from the USA. It also found that 33% think 100% of a product must originate in a country for it to be called made there.

Unless a marketer can show that all components of a recycled piece, including the natural resources, came from the USA, “an unqualified U.S.-origin claim may deceive a significant number of consumers,” the letter states. Staff said it would reevaluate if new testing showed recycling changes how consumers read origin claims. It offered to help the industry write qualified claims that highlight recycling done in the USA.

The trade groups said they were considering their next steps, National Jeweler reported.