Majestic Wine has started an in-store recycling scheme for used bottle corks.
The wine retailer is running the initiative in more than 200 of its stores across the UK.
Working with the Portuguese Cork Association (APCOR), the aim of the in-store recycling scheme is to collect and repurpose over one million corks per year. Until now, nationwide cork recycling has not been made available in the UK unlike in other parts of the world.
Once collected, the recycled natural corks will be sent to The Eden Project in Cornwall, which is set to trial the use of natural cork as a mulch around Mediterranean plants.
Majestic CEO, John Colley, said: “As a national retailer, we’re always looking at ways we can pull our weight in the climate crisis.
“Cork represents a perfectly circular, environmentally friendly industry from cork oak to bottle – with just one final missing component; what happens after the wine has been drunk.”
He added: “By working with the Cork Association, we’re squaring the circle by giving our customers and stores the opportunity to continue a natural cork’s journey at The Eden Project. I’m sure not only will this give our customers another reason to enjoy a great bottle of wine, but also another reason to visit us in-store – with their pockets brimming with corks!”
Carlos de Jesus, APCOR campaign director, commented: “Cork is about so much more than simply a closure.
“It’s a fabulous, natural product which has a story and history all of its own. The fact that we can add another chapter to that story, with hundreds of thousands of corks collected from right across the UK to be used at such an iconic site, is really thrilling.”
Majestic’s move comes after other retailers have launched initiatives to take back the packaging used in the items they sell, as part of more circular thinking across the industry.
Read more about an in-store recycling scheme from Lush on Green Retail World
[Image credit: Majestic Wine]
