Green Bottles Hit Europe
A
wine described as the "most environmentally integrated"
wine product ever offered - complete with an Amorim
natural cork - has gone on sale in Europe.
African Dawn is
a range of wines produced by the Rooiberg Winery in
South Africa. Rooiberg was the first cooperative winery
to achieve membership of the Biodiversity and Wine Initiative,
set up in 2004 by the South African wine industry and
conservation groups.
Apart from embracing
the principles of sustainable production, what sets
African Dawn Wines apart is a decree that all product
packaging - bottles, closures, labels and boxes - must
meet its strict environmental policy.
The wine is already
available in Holland, Germany, Belgium and South Africa
and was recently launched in the world's biggest wine
market, the UK and Ireland, marking another milestone
in green consumerism.
In a move that has
won the endorsement of the World Wide Fund for Nature
(WWF), one of the world's most trusted green organisations,
African Dawn bottles are sealed with an Amorim cork
approved by the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC).
Amorim is the first
company in the world to achieve full 'chain of custody'
certification from the FSC for a natural packaging product.
The FSC certification covers both forest management
and the processing of cork from certified forests and
ensures that the cork production pathway from bark to
bottle meets stringent environmental guidelines.
Amorim's marketing
and communications director, Carlos de Jesus, says FSC
certified corks are currently available from Amorim
alone, as no other cork company has yet developed chain
of custody.
"We believe
that demand for packaging materials that are responsibly
produced, and verifiably so, will only increase in the
future," Mr de Jesus said.
African Dawn Wines
managing director Rob van Prooijen said FSC certified
cork was the perfect seal for a wine where the emphasis
is on sustainability from production right through every
aspect of packaging.
"Securing FSC
certified cork to seal this wine was extremely important
to us because the closure is a product of nature,"
he said.
WWF's logo appears
on the bottle label, printed on paper that has also
won FSC approval. A percentage of all African Dawn wine
purchases goes towards saving endangered species and
wildlife habitats worldwide.
The wine's UK importer,
Bottle Green, described African Dawn as "the most
environmentally integrated product initiative the wine
industry has seen".
"African Dawn
wines will appeal to the growing group of ethically
aware consumers who want to feel that their purchase
can make a difference," said Bottle Green's operations
and marketing director, Richard Hitchcock.
With the increasing
awareness of environmental issues amongst consumers
there is growing demand from retailers for packaging
suppliers to meet sustainable guidelines.
FSC certification
is seen as the most effective way of balancing the environmental,
cultural and economic values of forests and it gives
cork producers an avenue for demonstrating their commitment
to sustainable forest management and production.
"By sourcing
raw material from FSC certified forests and through
our chain of custody, Amorim meets the demand for sustainable
natural packaging products," said Mr de Jesus.
This
story is an excerpt from the newsletter "Bark to
Bottle" found on the website www.corkfacts.com,
a product of the Amorim Cork Company.