Mother Earth Day

Earth Day was Monday, and Mother’s Day is coming up Sunday, May 12. Between the two, it makes sense to highlight products that are sustainable and help care for Mother Earth. For each one of the wood displays shown here, Rio Grande’s supplier partners with Trees for the Future to plant one tree. It’s that simple. You get a gorgeous, eye-catching display for your jewelry pieces and you can feel especially good every time you see it.

According to its website, "Since 1989, Trees for the Future has helped 1 million people in thousands of communities in over 20 countries in Asia, Africa, and Latin America plant more than 80 million trees."  Not only are they earth-friendly, but these displays also receive great reviews!

Chocolate Wood Necklace Bust Display

Rio's Wood Cone Jewelry Displays

Rio’s wood cone displays are hand-carved from sustainable mango tree wood grown in Bali and have hand-rubbed finishes. The beautifully grained mango tree wood is fast-growing and sustainable to harvest. These cones come in black, chocolate, and white-wash and a variety of sizes ideal for displaying rings, bracelets, and necklaces.

Throughout the Display & Packaging section of the catalog, sustainable products feature green stock numbers to let you know that they are made from recycled materials, renewable materials, and/or are produced using manufacturing processes that employ ecologically sound methods. Oxo-Zip Biodegradable Plastic Zipline Bags, Recycled Paper Gifts Boxes, Intercept Anti-Tarnish Plastic Bags that are non-toxic and fully recyclable, and Recycled Tissue Paper that is made using post-consumer fiber are a few more of our environmentally friendly Display & Packaging products. You can see all of our display and packaging options on our website.

Every time you see the familiar sustainable logo, you know that, with these products, you are helping to take care of the Earth for future generations. These efforts are ongoing for us, just as they no doubt are for you. This commitment of Rio's to minimize our environmental impact is not new. Did you know:

• In 1968, Rio Grande eliminated harmful cadmium from the solders we sell, twenty years before this became common practice.
• We have done energy consumption audits of our buildings for many years and currently use a third less energy to run our facilities than we did ten years ago.
• Our refinery, which recycles silver and gold from a variety of sources, is 30 years old and has won numerous environmental awards over the years.
• We have eliminated toxic solvents from our cleaning processes and now use soap and water to clean our products.
• Rio Grande installed the first megawatt commercial solar array in New Mexico, supplying most of the company’s power with nearly five acres of its own solar panels.
• We manufacture our findings using reclaimed/recycled metal or third party certified, ethically mined metal. Items we don’t manufacture ourselves are carefully sourced whenever possible from companies that also use reclaimed/recycled metals.

Much of this information and more is listed on our Help Page. Take a few minutes to visit that page and let your customers know when the products you buy from Rio Grande are ecologically-friendly.  While you’re at it, we’d love to hear from you about your own efforts in this area: How are you helping to protect the environment in your jewelry making?

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