Today Rio Tinto, one of the world’s largest metal and mining companies, unveiled START, a new blockchain sustainability solution.
Rio Tinto positions START as like a nutrition label on food, but instead for aluminum. The aim is to provide traceability and the ability for end consumers to see how responsibly and sustainably the metal is sourced.
“START is a significant step forward for the aluminium industry as the first offering of this kind, setting a new standard on transparency, traceability and responsible production from mine to market,” said Rio Tinto Aluminium CEO Alf Barrios.
“Our vision is that our customers can showcase the sustainability of the aluminium they purchase from Rio Tinto to their consumers, delivering full value from our responsible production.”
The sustainability label is now available on all Rio Tinto aluminium sales and the firm is offering a sustainability advisory service.
While this is the first initiative from a single mining company, several mining sustainability projects are underway. One of the advantages of going it alone is often the ability to move faster.
The World Economic Forum has its Mining and Metals Blockchain Initiative (MMBI) which recently launched a Carbon Tracing Platform. Members include Anglo American, Glencore, Tata Steel and others.
Startup Circulor is working with Mercedes and Volvo to track carbon footprints. And IBM has its Responsible Sourcing Blockchain Network which also includes Volvo, Glencore and others.
This article will be updated with more detail later.