Sustainability

Cork Supply controls vertically integrated operations, from Forest to Bottle, to ensure that its cork closures are of the best quality. Our specialized team of forestry professionals in Portugal work with producers from the main cork oak forest regions in both Portugal and Spain, implementing advanced forest management programs and selecting the best quality raw material for their corks.

We are strongly committed to the use of resources more efficiently, thus minimizing the environmental impacts of our activity reducing our emissions. We have a daily focus on :

• Minimizing the environmental impacts of our activities - the mitigation and adaptation to climate changes, the protection of biodiversity and ecosystems and pollution prevention.
• Fostering a sustainable management of the value chain, which implies the sustainable use of resources.
• Assessing the possibility of implementing environmental improvements, whenever there are changes in processes, people, and products.

“Cork Supply promotes, enhances and enables forests that are important natural CO2 sinks"

As a leading supplier of natural cork, we want our customers and consumers to have complete assurance that natural corks supplied by Cork Supply are sustainably and ethically sourced. We consider our proactive role in this area especially necessary because, as the WWF verifies, montado cork forests:

• support one of the world's highest levels of forest biodiversity, including the highest diversity of plants found anywhere the world.
• offer irreplaceable sanctuary to millions of wintering birds, and vital habitat for a native wildlife population that includes several highly endangered bird and animal species.
• provide an essential, sustainable income source that supports local industry, traditional cultures, and family livelihoods.
• function as massive carbon sinks, naturally sequestering and providing critical long-term storage for the dangerous atmospheric carbon greenhouse gasses (GHG) that impact climate change.
• play a key role in critical ecological processes, including water retention, fire prevention and soil conservation.
• defend European landscapes against creeping desertification and consequent depopulation, poverty and loss of vital ecological biodiversity.
• are one of the best examples of balanced conservation and development anywhere in the world.

We are committed to:

• Producing products that comply with global regulations and are safe for food contact.
• Promoting Circular Economy by using 100% the of the raw material.
• Leveraging the rich and naturally environmentally friendly products our forests provide us with.
• Developing environmentally friendly technologies, processes, products, and packaging materials.
• Producing products that are an added value to customers, meeting real market needs, with the highest quality possible.
• Investing heavily in R&D and QC to give our customers real guarantees.

The Naturally Sustainable Option

• Zero Waste!
• Use 100% of the raw material we purchase;
• Produce products that comply with global regulations and are safe for food contact;
• Produce products with the least impact;
• Leverage the rich and naturally environmentally friendly products our forests provide us with.
• Promote Circular Economy.

Our Employees are our Heart & Soul

Everywhere we set up operations, we look to become an integral part of the community and play a socially active and relevant role.

We know that we can make a difference and we work with that purpose: through the creation of direct and indirect jobs, enhancing local economies, being actively involved in social development projects, and through the environmental management of our activities.

We know that our employees are the heart and soul of Cork Supply’s success. We believe that keeping a health and safe workplace, improving our people skills and education, while promoting a good balance between work and personal life are essential to our strategic development.

The company recognizes the importance of diversity and gender equality, promotes the inclusion and non-discrimination of all employees, regardless of gender, age, race, religion, disability and / or individual sexual orientation, guaranteeing all workers equal conditions and opportunities.

Cork Supply promotes gender equality for every function, including an equal pay policy for equal work. Cork Supply also integrates people with special needs through collaboration with social institutions contracting collaborators for specific functions.

Commitment with Local Communities

We have been collaborating regularly with around 20 social institutions in Europe, in the United States and South Africa.

In fulfilment with out citizenship commitment, Cork Supply continues to promote and support social initiatives, aiming to integrate social responsibility into its culture. Aware that attention to others starts within the organization and extends abroad, social responsibility has been integrated in the Company’s strategy and culture, having contributed to social solidarity actions, Programs and Projects.