As outlined in Utilisation much cork is recycled within the production process.

The recycling of natural cork stoppers after use is also well established in several countries and is gaining momentum globally due to a groundswell of support for community-based cork recycling programs.

Growing environmental awareness has led to the development of many new recycling initiatives as well as an increase in the volume of corks being processed through long-standing programs.

Recycled cork is used to manufacture a range of products including flooring, footwear, engine gaskets, insulation material, boat decking, safety mats and hockey and cricket balls.

In the United States, Amorim executives have been overwhelmed by the response to the company’s ReCORK program.

ReCORK has grown dramatically since its inception in 2007 and as of May 2010 had collected more than 7.5 million natural cork stoppers for recycling. ReCORK has a partnership with Canadian shoe manufacturer, SOLE, that sees natural cork stoppers turned into footwear.

In Australia, Girl Guides have been collecting cork stoppers since 1990 as part of a major fundraising campaign for the national youth organisation. The Guides collect about 30 tonnes of natural cork a year and have collected over 100 million corks since the program began.

This scenario is repeated in many countries with cork recycling programs run by voluntary organisations and local government. Amorim has initiated cork collection campaigns in Italy, South Africa and the United Kingdom.

In Portugal, Amorim is supporting the Green Cork Program that started in 2008 and collected three million stoppers in its first six months. Income generated through this recycling program is supporting the ‘Create Forests, Conserve the Biodiversity’ program that aims to plant 85,000 cork oak trees.

In order to better manage its commitment to recycling in Portugal, Amorim opened a new unit for processing recycled stoppers in 2009. The plant is expected to process 90 million corks over its first four years of operation.

Through this unit and its support for cork recycling programs worldwide, Amorim is playing a proactive role in recycling wine closures — and in the process adding to the strong environmental credentials of natural cork.