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MNN.COM > MNN BLOGGERS > Robin Shreeves's Blog

Robin Shreeves

Why and how to recycle wine bottle corks

Tue, Nov 25 2008 at 12:02 PM EST

Wine bottle corksSome things are so small that recycling them doesn't seem like a big deal. Take wine bottle corks. They are very small and biodegradable. Why not just throw them in the trash?

 
It takes the Cork Oak Tree about 25 years before the cork can be harvested from it. After that cork can be harvested from the tree every 9 years, but only cork from the very first harvest of a tree is suitable for wine corks.
 
Wine corks cannot be reused as wine corks because of bacterial concerns, but they can be recycled into many other useful objects such as pushpin corkboards, coasters and flooring. If the home improvement shows are any indication, cork flooring is becoming a popular option. In one weekend, I saw three home shows on HGTV that used cork flooring in their designs. Each show mentioned how environmentally friendly cork is.
 
While cork is environmentally friendly and renewable, it takes a long time to renew. It makes sense to recycle what cork products there already are.
 
So where can you recycle your wine corks? The US is a behind other countries and there aren't many programs, yet, but there are a few options.
 
You can send them (at your own cost) to a program called Korks 4 Kids, a not-for-profit program, organized through Recycle Cork USA, LLC. to raise funds from the recycling of cork for Children's Charities.
 
They can also be sent (again, at your own cost) to Yemm & Hart, a green materials company that will recycle them into products.
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Posted By Patrick Spencer - Thu, Jan 28 2010 at 8:57 PM EST

Cork ReHarvest

Robin, Thank you for brining attention to the issues concerning recycling wine corks. Our nonprofit organization, Cork ReHarvest,not only works to recycle some of the billions of natural corks that come into the US each year, but also to educate people about the potential devastation of the Mediterranean cork forests. Please visit our website: corkreharvest.org to learn more.

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Posted By David - Tue, Apr 07 2009 at 9:55 PM EST

Recycle of all bottle corks

The e-mail address to send for a reply from David is as follows . shortypa47@hotmail.com . You send the corks and I will recycle them . I am non-profit so paying for shipping is out of the question .

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Posted By David - Tue, Apr 07 2009 at 9:50 PM EST

Recycle of all bottle corks

I will except all your bottle corks . I will except all the natural an even the synthetic corks that you may have . Ship them to me and I will recycle them and reuse them in projects and crafts . I am small and can not afford to pay for the shipping and handling , but I will except your corks without a question . Send an e-mail to me , and I will e-mail you the address as to where to send them .
I feel that everyone shoulf be aware that it will take years for a single cork in the.... More

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