Cork Recycling
Ξ March 30th, 2008 | → 0 Comments | ∇ Uncategorized |
Great strides have been made in recent years by the cork industry to clean up its act. I refer specifically to the problem of cork taint. Excellent recent articles on this matter may be found here and here, both from Wines and Vines, a wine industry magazine of record. And the major Portuguese cork manufacturer Amorim, in particular, has gone on the offensive with a routinely updated, very informative web site. Deserving special mention is their publication Bark to Bottle.
This (possible) resurgence of the cork industry comes at a time when new questions are being asked about the screwcap, especially with respect to the matter of reduction. An interesting experiment using both cork and screwcap has been ongoing at Tablas Creek Vineyards.
While I remain an agnostic on the controversy of cork versus screwcap, especially with respect to young wines, one small issue frequently gets lost in the discussion: the carbon footprint of screwcap production and disposal as opposed to cork’s inherent recyclability. Indeed, many countries have begun cork recycling programs. Following, as part of Amorim’s media offensive they’ve recently announced a cork recycling pilot program (where else, but in Oregon) called ReCork America. Among their ambitions is to collect 1 ton of wine and champagne corks by September, 2008 for the purpose of recycling them into “flooring tiles, building insulation, automotive gaskets, craft materials, soil conditioner and sports equipment.”
However, I have found a Mom and Pop company, Yemm & Hart, deserving of greater recognition. Tucked away in the Missouri Ozarks, they have been involved with the recycling of wine corks since 2004. And so far, they’ve collected 3000 lbs of them! I had the pleasure of speaking with Steve recently. Yemm & Hart is the brainchild of Steve Yemm and Deborah Hart Yemm. Steve has been self-employed since the mid-seventies as a cabinet and furniture maker. In 1981 they incorporated, and by 1989 they were working extensively with post-consumer materials, particularly polyethylene, PVC plastic with embedded polyester strands and rubber from auto tires, materials that would have otherwise ended up in landfills. In 2004 they began an experimental, nation-wide program to recycle wine and champagne corks for use in flooring, wall insulation, and any other use the architecturally-minded might imagine.
Once gathered, the wine corks undergo a heating process which fills their contract factory with the heady smell of wine. The lovely scent eventually boils off, as do the winery markings disappear. What is left is a block of material that can be sliced into sheets of a requested thickness.
Steve and Debra’s ambitions are limited only by the public’s awareness of their program. What they need most of all is a dedicated list of suppliers. For all of us who have suffered a tainted bottle of wine or one that was glorious, give the cork a second life. I encourage readers to explore their site and, most importantly, find the time to send wine corks, still and bubbly, to Yemm & Hart. Keep a simple mailer near where you most often open your bottles; when full, drop it in the post.
Finally, their web site contains many useful links to world-wide organizations concerned with conservation generally. One of my favorites is an excellent, well-researched story that first appeared in Audubon about the extraordinary nature of the cork oak and the ecosystem(s) dependent upon their forests. An eye-opening read. It may be found here.
Steve and Deborah, my corks are in the mail!
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