1 WHY CHOOSE CORK
1.1 Fertility and biodiversity
1.2 Good air
1.3 Environmental safety
1.4 Social impact
1.5 Positive ecological balance
1.6 Perception by the consumer
2 THE CORK INDUSTRY
2.1 The cork oak
The cork oak is a tree belonging to the Quercus family (Quercus suber), it can reach a height of up to 20 meters, with a diameter of up to 1.5 meters and is characterized by a yellow-brownish bark; once the bark is stripped, the trunk becomes red.
Cork forests only grow in the western Mediterranean: the Iberian peninsula (Spain and Portugal - 1,235,000 hectares), the Maghreb countries (Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia - 718,000 hectares), Italy (225,000 hectares) and southern France (22,000 hectares), for a total of around 2,200,000 hectares, 400,000 of which are not productive. All the attempts to introduce cork oaks in other areas to produce cork have failed.
The cork oak is a tree that is particularly adequate for dry areas thanks to its roots, that can reach remarkable depths, and is among the few plants capable of withstanding fires thanks to the protection offered by its particular bark.
| NAZIONE | ETTARI COLTIVATI | % SULLA SUPERFICIE MONDIALE | PRODUZIONE (ton X 1000) |
% SULLA PRODUZIONE MONDIALE |
| Portogallo | 725.000 | 33 | 175 | 52 |
| Spagna | 510.000 | 23 | 110 | 32 |
| Italia | 225.000 | 10 | 20 | 6 |
| Francia | 22.000 | 1 | 5 | 1 |
Marocco |
198.000 | 9 | 15 | 4 |
| Algeria | 460.000 | 21 | 6 | 2 |
| Tunisia | 60.000 | 3 | 9 | 3 |
| Totale | 2.200.000 | 100 | 340 | 100 |
2.2 The cork stripping - Photogallery
2.3 Selection
2.4 Forest management
2.5 “Wild” cork and “reproduction” cork
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| Colombin reached more than 25 millions euro turnover in 2007. Annual report for fiscal year 2007 confirms the growth of the multinational group. With over 1200 clients and 800.000 cork stoppers produced per day, Colombin closed the year with more than 25 millions euro turnover only in Italy. |
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| Colombin to launch a new communication campaign. Elegant and minimal, the new campaign by Art Attack Adv will be focused on the most advanced cork production processes developed and applied by Colombin for the total elimination of TCA. |
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| Colombin.com is now powered by Google. Already online on the company website the new tool implemented by Google, the leader of search engines. The search box "powered by Google" allows the users to easily browse contents of interest inside Colombin.com. |
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