Let’s talk cork. recork.com
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We love cork, and you should too. Let us tell you why.
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About us Products Get involved
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Who is ReCORK?
ReCORK is North America’s largest natural cork recycling program, launched in 2008 by footwear company SOLE. SOLE became enamored with cork while seeking new ways to use sustainable content in their products. “Part of growing a business responsibly is diminishing the impact of our actions on the environment. We are thrilled to pioneer cork recycling because cork is such an amazing natural, raw material with benefits that extend beyond bottle stoppers,” says CEO Mike Baker. ReCORK is an alliance of individuals and 2
businesses working together to collect and recycle natural corks. With roughly 3,000 drop-off locations, more than 8,000 new cork trees planted, and 100 million natural corks collected, we are off to a great start. ReCORK aims to be a point of interaction for education around cork, recycling and sustainability. With billions more natural corks to recycle every year, we need your help to continue to grow the program. Please join the ReCORK movement and help us make a positive impact with recycled natural cork.
About us
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The incredible power of the cork oak tree.
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About us
Protecting our planet with cork.
Cork is a great carbon sink. The bark of the cork oak is harvested by hand every nine years. This process causes no harm and the tree does not get cut down. Harvesting its bark extends the tree’s lifespan to over 200 years. The larger the cork oak tree grows, the more carbon dioxide it locks away. The harvesting of a cork oak is one of the finest examples of traditional, sustainable land use. Cork oak forests are found in landscapes which cover nearly 2.7 million hectares of Portugal, Spain, Algeria, Morocco, Italy, Tunisia, and France. Recycling cork extends the useful life of this natural, sustainable material. By purchasing products with recycled cork, you are also investing in growing and preserving cork forests to lock away carbon for years to come. Recycling your corks in one of our collection bins ensures that cork is used to replace harmful, petroleum-based materials in consumer products. Recycle your corks, buy products made from cork, and encourage others to recycle their corks—it’s that easy! 5
About us
Minimizing our environmental impact.
As a cork recycling company, we have an ongoing commitment and obligation to minimize our environmental impact. We begin by measuring our carbon footprint, powering our factory with hydro-electric power, using UPS’s carbon offsetting program and planting cork trees. We have built a network with multiple collection points and grinding facilities designed to optimize efficiency for recycling the cork. With these combined efforts, ReCORK has reduced its carbon footprint beyond carbon neutral, into carbon negative. As the scope of ReCORK expands, we will continually adjust our processes to complement the evolution of our growth. There is no finish line in this process. This is a challenge, but also a great opportunity to minimize the transportation footprint of the cork we collect. 6
What is carbon negative? “Carbon negative” refers to the reduction of an entity’s carbon footprint to less than neutral, so that the entity in question has a net effect of removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere rather than adding it. That achievement requires a more aggressive approach than carbon neutrality, which merely nullifies the effect that an entity has on the environment.
Your corks make a difference for the planet.
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Cork by the numbers.
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The equivalent of over 31,000,000,000 bottles of wine are consumed every year. Bottles with cork stoppers leave the smallest environmental footprint in comparison to plastic or metal stoppers. The unique properties of cork allow us to create new types of eco-friendly consumer products with your used wine corks!
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You have helped us collect more than 100,000,000 corks. Thank you!
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With your help, we’ve planted over 8,000 new cork trees.
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So far, over 3,000 partners have joined ReCORK.
Harvest
Bottle
Cork bark is harvested in a process that is actually good for the trees and increases their lifespan.
Cork is a versatile material with benefits that extend far beyond bottle stoppers.
Drink
Recycle
Every year, the equivalent of over 31 billion bottles of wine are consumed worldwide.
With the help of our recycling partners, ReCORK has collected over 100 million corks.
Grind
Create
We grind the cork we collect to make new items.
We design, develop, and manufacture new sustainable products with your cork.
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Meet our family of recycled cork products for fitness and surf.
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Products
198* Block Natural
32* Traction - Jet
32* Traction - Wave
32* Traction - Vino
Double natural/black tail and tips
Double natural/blue tail and tips
Double natural/red tail and tips
32* Traction - Bomber
32* Traction - Storm
32* Traction - Redrum
Double black/natural tail and tips
Double blue/natural tail and tips
Double red/natural tail and tips
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Products
Lean on me. Made from 198 recycled natural wine corks, the 198* Block offers a stable, non-slip surface for your fitness or yoga practice.
Fit and function
198* Block Natural
• Offers stability and increased balance to help with ideal alignment, deeper poses and elevated strength. • Large enough to practice with comfort. • Naturally grippy, non-slip surface with comfortable contoured edges. • Three different height options for custom support. • Made from 100% Recycled Cork • Dimensions: 9” length x 6” width x 3” height (23 cm x 15 cm x 8 cm) • Weight: 2.1 lbs (0.95 kg)
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A portion of the proceeds from the sale of ReCORK traction pads goes to support Sustainable Surf ’s ECOBOARD Project program.
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Ride a wave of change.
Products
Keep harmful foam out of our oceans with the world’s first 100% recycled cork surf traction pad, a sustainable alternative to standard petroleum-based EVA foam pads. The ReCORK 32* Traction is a high-performance, naturally grippy composite of 32 recycled wine corks.
Fit and function
32* Traction - Natural Natural
• Available in a variety of colors. • Keeps harmful EVA foam out of the ocean. • Lightweight and durable non-slip surface. • Directional Hex grip pattern for increased traction. • Thin profile offers enhanced board feel and responsiveness. • Option of 3 or 5 pad configuration. • Made from 100% Recycled Cork • Dimensions: 14” length x 13” width x 1” high 45 degree tail kick. • Weight: 0.35 lbs (0.16 kg) • Thickness: 0.2” (0.5 cm)
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Products
SOLE introduces recycled cork into new product lines.
Orthopedic footwear brand SOLE announces ReCORK’s recycled cork as an integral ingredient in new designs. In an effort to increase sustainability and decrease environmental impact, SOLE collaborated with us to create truly unique lines that combine their signature footbed anatomy with ReCORK’s environmental mindset.
SOLE x UBB Jasper Wool Eco Chukka, made using 100% recycled cork. Recycled cork is perfect for use in footwear because it’s eco-friendly, light, shock absorbent, naturally durable, moisture-wicking, quick-to-mold and able to retain its shape very well.
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Get involved
Partner with us.
If you are a business looking to recycle corks or are interested in carrying our retail products, ReCORK has a partnership option that will suit your needs. Partner with us and receive marketing materials, get listed on our site and join a large network of businesses who are passionate about sustainability. Becoming a ReCORK partner is easy and free. We take care of everything. Reach out and join the cork recycling movement today.
Cork collection details We manage all parts of the process for our partners who collect cork. We provide collection bins and arrange and pay for return shipping to our recycling depots through the UPS carbon neutral shipping program.
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Get involved
Individuals
Retail Partners
Be part of the ReCORK story by recycling your corks, buying products made from cork and encouraging others to recycle their corks. Help us make a difference. Collecting cork at home? Cork drop-off locations can be found at recork.org/locations.
Own the story of recycled cork in your storefront with ReCORK products. As a Retail Partner, your customers can purchase our lifestyle products direct from you. You will be listed on our site under Find a Location and benefit from added traffic of people who want to purchase recycled cork products. You will also receive our products at wholesale price.
Public Collection Partners Join the cork recycling movement with a public cork collection bin in your storefront for your customers. You will be listed on our site under Find a Location and will benefit from added traffic of people who want to recycle their corks.
Private Collection Partners We work with large scale organizations that collect cork with private collection bins in the backend of their business environments. You do not collect cork from the public. You send us the corks you’ve used as a part of doing business. You will be featured on our website as a proud Private Collection Partner to ReCORK.
Closed-Loop Partners Want to collect cork and sell our recycled cork products in your storefront? As a Closed-Loop Partner, you can own the entire ReCORK story. You may choose the collection partnership that best suits your needs as a business, a Public Collection Partnership or a Private Collection Partnership. You will also receive our products at wholesale price. You are our ideal brand champion.
Sound like a perfect match? Find out more at recork.com 19
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Get involved
Have an idea for your own cork product? Re-Use Partner At ReCORK, we believe that companies have a social responsibility to make the best choices possible when sourcing materials. To reduce the environmental impact of your product creation, a great option is to use recycled materials. As a ReCORK Re-Use Partner, you purchase our 100% recycled cork to use as an important ingredient in your new product creation. Using recycled cork in your products extends the life of a naturally sustainable material, keeps it from the waste stream, and ensures cork forests remain viable environments that lock away carbon for years to come. Advocate sustainable change and choose a supply chain where the raw material comes from people like you. Want to use our recycled cork in your products or collaborate on a great idea? Let’s talk about creating change with recycled cork.
Reach out. Email ideas@recork.com 21
Get involved
It’s five o’clock somewhere!
When you reach for a bottle, look for those with natural corks. The best thing you can do to support the cork forest is to choose cork products whenever possible. Buying bottles with natural cork promotes cork harvesting, which extends the lifespan of cork trees and supports the conservation over 6.7 million acres of ecologically sensitive cork forests. Want to know which wines use natural cork and which ones don’t?
Find out with CORKwatch. recork.com/corkwatch 22
How can I support cork forests? There is a common myth that we are facing a cork shortage. In reality, the single greatest threat to the cork forests is a reduction in global demand. If you stop buying cork, then cork forests really will disappear!
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Proost Salud Cin cin Santé Skål Cheers
to our shared planet.
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Learn more at recork.com Find wine with natural cork at recork.com/corkwatch Email us at info@recork.com Follow us on Facebook and Twitter @recork Follow us on Instagram @recorkofficial Share your stories #recork 25
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