Green Logistics: ReCORK and SOLE Footwear Alliance

Image by H Robertson Photography via Flickr

About a year ago, I posted on the ReCORK/Whole Foods partnership to recycle used corks from wine bottles. Now we know what is going to happen to some of these corks. ReCORK announced on 5 October that they are partnering with SOLE Footwear of Canada to reclaim and "up-cycle" a portion of the billions of natural cork wine closures (trade-speak) currently discarded by US and Canadian consumers.

According to the press release, SOLE is a leading manufacturer of footwear products with distribution throughout North America.  The used corks are re-manufactured into a cork blend for their footwear products, which both enhances the "material properties" (whatever they are) of the footwear products while extending the useful life of the cork for years to come.

ReCORK's recycling partners include American Airlines/Sodexo, The Wine Tasting Network, Diageo Chateau & Estate Wines, Rodney Strong Wine Estates, Cakebread Cellars, Rutherford Wine Company and Plumpjack, among many others. So far, over 4 million corks have been collected, with minimal promotion.  The alliance with SOLE will allow ReCORK to substantially expand their collection efforts.

I wonder if the new footwear products will be cork specific--the Cabernet loafers or the Chardonnay slippers come to mind. And can we smell the fruity nose of each wine as we walk in the new footwear? Will the soft cork innersoles invoke a pleasant, summer's day walk in the vineyards?  Doubtful, although the fact that the corks do not end up in a landfill or furnace should make wine lovers feel good.  Now if we can do something about those bottles....

Comments

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Good work!
i like it.
Thanks for share.