Tuesday, September 10, 2013

Simple Solutions - Corks

Since deciding to hit the road to Zero Waste, I have still been trying to work out a solution with what to do with all of my corks.  For the longest time, it was a non-issue, as I gave them to my dad to make trivets he would then gave away as gifts like this one below.  But, when the need for gift giving waned, I was faced with a challenge.


Since then, I have been research the issue.  I looked into composting and assumed that they would be given they are tree bark/plant based.  While they are compostable, it's hit or miss as to whether a municipality curbside composting program will take them because they take much longer to decompose than normal compostable food waste.  In one article, I read that you could put them in your compost if you grind them up into small pieces in your food processor.  I didn't really like that option because I am certain it will seriously dull the blade.

So, you can imagine my delight when I stumbled across a cork return bin in Whole Foods.  Someone will gather and recycle/reuse the corks for me without any inconvenience.  Problem solved!

So be sure to check in at your local store (whether it be Whole Foods or even a wine store) to see if they too have a collection bin for reuse.  Funny enough, one of the guys working there saw me put the corks in the bin and thanked me!!  No, thank YOU!

1 comment:

  1. Very good post. You have done so much research and written a detailed article. I have a box filled with corks and now i can use them in many ways

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