An important element of responsible sourcing is to put in place chain of custody systems to trace gold and diamonds to their mines of origin, and systematically record this information, resulting in traceability of material.

Traceability and chain of custody information are not guarantees that international human rights and environmental standards are respected in the mines of origin but are useful tools for jewelers who seek to assess and monitor human rights risks at the mine level.

Source: Human Rights Watch. 2018."The Hidden Cost of Jewelry Human Rights in Supply Chains and the Responsibility of Jewelry Companies, p.41".