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We produce materials essential for human progress
We are the largest mining and metals company operating in Canada today
We work hard to leave a lasting, positive legacy everywhere we work
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Whether it’s coffee, clothes or phones, we all want to know the stories behind the products we buy. Were workers treated fairly? Was the environment cared for? Were steps taken to save water?
Aluminium is no different: our customers – and theirs – want to know the metal in their product is made in a responsible way.
To help meet growing demand for transparency and traceability of the products we buy, we created START. Like a “nutrition label” for aluminium, it tracks key information about where and how it was produced.
The first of its kind in the industry, START uses secure blockchain technology to provide information on ten criteria: carbon footprint, water use, recycled content, energy sources, community investment, safety performance, diversity in leadership, business integrity, regulatory compliance and transparency. This information is readily accessible via the START platform, where customers can view sustainability insights and manage orders.
More than 100 of our customers have signed up for START in an effort to decarbonise or meet their sustainability goals.
Aluminium is made from bauxite, or aluminium ore. Bauxite is the basic raw material that is refined into alumina, which in turn is sent to smelters for processing into aluminium. START tracks this whole process, so our customers can have confidence in the product they’re buying.
START shows how aluminium has been made: products like smartphones, cars and drink cans can be traced back to the country of origin in a fast and secure way.
By using blockchain technology we deliver information in a transparent and traceable way to our customers. Blockchain is a kind of digital record-keeping system: it collects information and stores it in “blocks” connected in a chronological chain. With every action – like bauxite being refined into alumina, for example – a new block is created. And every block is time stamped, ensuring information can’t be changed.
We defined the ten criteria in START after researching what was relevant to the market. We collect the primary data from our operations as part of our annual sustainability reporting, and it’s verified by our subject matter experts and our Board’s Sustainability Committee. Then we provide the information to a third-party lifecycle assessment consultant who adds secondary data from industry-leading databases to create the START lifecycle assessment.
Each order of aluminium is assigned a unique QR code, which customers can print on their products. By scanning the code, consumers are taken to a web page that details the journey from the ground to the finished product.
And when you can see how the aluminium is made, you’re empowered to make a more sustainable choice.
Banner image: James Yarema
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With the exception of the use of cookies, Rio Tinto generally does not seek to collect personal data through this website. However if you choose to provide personal data to Rio Tinto through this website (for example, by sending us an email), we will process that personal data to answer your query and if relevant, to manage our business relationship with you or your company. We won't process that personal data for other purposes except where required to meet our legal obligations or otherwise as authorised by law and notified to you.
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With your consent, our website uses cookies to distinguish you from other users of our website. This helps us to provide you with a good experience when you browse our website and also allows us to improve our site. A cookie is a small file of letters and numbers that we store on your browser or the hard drive of your computer if you agree. Cookies contain information that is transferred to your computer's hard drive.
As some data privacy laws regulate IP addresses and other information collected through the use of cookies as personal data, Rio Tinto’s processing of such personal data needs to comply with its Data Privacy Standard (see Part 1 of our Privacy Policy), and also applicable data privacy laws.
With the exception of the use of cookies (explained below), Rio Tinto generally does not seek to collect personal data through this website. However if you choose to provide personal data to Rio Tinto through this website (for example, by sending us an email), we will process that personal data to answer your query and if relevant, to manage our business relationship with you or your company. We won't process that personal data for other purposes except where required to meet our legal obligations or otherwise as authorised by law and notified to you.
Part 1 of this Privacy Policy contains the Rio Tinto Data Privacy Standard, which provides an overview of Rio Tinto’s approach to personal data processing. There is additional information in the appendices to the Data Privacy Standard, including information about disclosures, trans-border data transfers, the exercise of data subject rights and how to make complaints or obtain further information relating to Rio Tinto’s processing of your personal data.
If you choose to subscribe to our media releases or other communications, you can unsubscribe at any time (by following the instructions in the email or by contacting us at digital.comms@riotinto.com).
With your consent, our website uses cookies to distinguish you from other users of our website. This helps us to provide you with a good experience when you browse our website and also allows us to improve our site.
A cookie is a small file of letters and numbers that we store on your browser or the hard drive of your computer if you agree. Cookies contain information that is transferred to your computer's hard drive.
As some data privacy laws regulate IP addresses and other information collected through the use of cookies as personal data, Rio Tinto’s processing of such personal data needs to comply with its Data Privacy Standard (see Part 1 of this Privacy Policy), and also applicable data privacy laws.
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