CORK
Cork is extracted from the bark of cork oak trees. Cork oaks grow in the southwestern Mediterranean countries of Spain, Portugal, Algeria, and Morocco. There, they are one of 150 endemic tree species.
Why Cork
The antibacterial active ingredient in Biork Mineral Deodorant is potassium crystal alum. We want to provide this high-quality natural product to our customers in an ecologically sound form: That's why cork holds and protects the mineral stone. Cork is a renewable resource, it is highly recyclable, and is recommended by environmental organizations. Unfortunately, even cosmetic manufacturers place little value on recyclable packaging or do often only so called "green-washing".
Climate protector
Cork oaks make an important contribution to mitigating climate change. They store up to 30 percent more CO2 than other trees. Covering an area of approximately 2.3 million hectares, the Mediterranean cork oak forests sequester around 13 million tons of CO2 annually. Incidentally, a cork oak whose bark is regularly harvested sequesters more than three times as much CO2 as an unused tree.
Where does our Cork come from?
The cork for Biork Mineral Deodorant comes from Portugal. Portuguese cork oak forests have existed for over 1,000 years. The country is the largest cork producer – about half of the world's cork is grown there. The main growing area is in the barren Alentejo region in the south. In Portugal alone, cork oaks capture approximately five percent of the country's entire CO2 emissions.
Cork extraction
Cork oaks grow ten to twelve meters tall and reach a trunk diameter of up to one meter. They can only be peeled for the first time after 20 years. Cork harvesting is done very carefully by hand, with the harvest beginning in May and ending in August. The bark is left to dry for a year before further processing. The bark then grows back on the tree within nine to eleven years. A cultivated tree can live for 200 years, during which time it can produce up to 200 kilograms of cork.
Threatened cork oak forests
Two developments threaten the cultural landscape of the cork oak forests. First, there is a new trend to replace natural corks with other closures for bottles. Declining sales jeopardize the preservation of sustainably managed cork oak forests and thus the great biodiversity in these cultural landscapes. Added to this is the danger of forest fires. Regular harvesting of cork oaks promotes a certain resistance to fire. A forest fire can destroy decades of management and efforts in a matter of minutes. Only firefighting aircraft and helicopters are capable of preventing the worst in an emergency. The consequences of forest fires for the cultural landscape are dramatic. The cork oak biotopes are among the most biologically rich in the world and boast one of the highest levels of biodiversity among forest habitats. They thus provide refuges for some critically endangered species, such as the Iberian lynx, the Spanish imperial eagle, and the black vulture. By using cork, Biork aims to contribute to the preservation of these ecosystems.
Protection of cork
Cork oak forests are listed in the Natura 2000 network under the EU Habitats Directive. WWF also protects cork forests with a specially developed program and recommends buying wines made with genuine European cork.
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Cork-Recycling
That's why we use cork as the protective cover for our Biork. Used cork is an excellent raw material for the production of insulation materials or flooring. It therefore makes perfect sense to collect our deodorant's cover separately from bottle corks. Cork can be disposed of at all public recycling centers.