THE ENVIRONMENT IS IN DANGER AND…

… from the cork sector and all the wineries in the world, we can do much to contribute to its improvement.

There is no doubt that, as mentioned in our blog, this year our total cork supply comes from Sierra de San Pedro in Caceres.  First it is because as a raw material it was very interesting for us, in order to obtain the cork stoppers that we can sell to our customers in 2017.

But besides the technical reasons there are environmental reasons which we should not forget when we look for our raw material. And we think that the same thing happens to the wineries when they decide their stoppers.

The Sierra de San Pedro is declared as a Special Protection Area (SPA) and Special Area of Conservation (SAC). Its ecosystem represents clearly the Mediterranean forest and scrubland.

This area is a real reserve of species such as Spanish Imperial Eagle (Aquila adalberti), a bird in danger of extinction. It is one of the most important species of the Sierra de San Pedro, which is a haven for this bird of prey.

The Spanish population is 400 pairs of which 21 nest in Sierra de San Pedro, and 22% of them prefer to nest in cork oaks.

The Black Stork (Ciconia nigra) is also an endangered bird, of which 33% of pairs prefer to nest in cork oaks. The current population in Sierra de San Pedro is 9 pairs.

But the bird who has a great preference for nesting in cork oaks is the Black Vulture (Aegypius monachus), 62% of the pairs prefer this tree. The population of this bird in Spain is 1.600 pairs, of which 307 of them are in the Sierra de San Pedro. Therefore, the black vulture is a very sensitive bird to the alteration of its habitat.

It seems clear that, at least to date, there is no valid alternative to the cork, in order to stopper top-quality wines. So, if besides the technical reasons for choosing a wine we think about the environment, we will feel even better.

The cork oak forests are one of the most valuable ecosystems in terms of biodiversity, giving shelter to some of the most iconic and endangered species in the Mediterranean ecosystems, as we have seen previously.

If we stop using cork stoppers for the wines, we will put the traditional cork extraction at risk, which is one of the main economic activities in rural cork regions. This way, the consequences would be unemployment, abandonment of forest management, an increase in the risk of fire and therefore the destruction of the cork oak forests.

Thank you very much if you choose cork stoppers for your wine and, enjoy your wine!