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Ecological aspects of closures – and of
wine transport
11 July 2006 From Andy Zimmermann, specialist South African wine importer in Switzerland: Just a short notice on environmental friendliness: Cork - in terms of being bio-degradable, yes; but transport from Portugal, for example, does harm the environment. Plastic, being produced out of oil, is also not so reasonable, and may also be imported (if not the synthetic corks themselves, then the oil). The screwcap is, after all, the way to go – if produced in South Africa, out of aluminium hopefully, which is produced in South Africa too. And if it is recycled (which is the norm in most European countries, where glass, aluminium, etc mostly gets mostly recycled, but this is not yet the case in Africa) After all, one has to educate the market/consumer: and nothing is worse than cork taint. Including for the importer, who has to replace the bad bottles in Switzerland, for example, free of charge. Or, which is worse, the corked wine leaves a bad quality image of his wines with the consumer - because the guy does not want the hassle of going to apply for a replacement bottle, but might not buy from this wine producer any more.... The environmental problem is hitting the New World hard. Recently we have heard a lot of customer statements like: ‘Why should we buy wine from so far away? It grows in our own country or elsewhere in Europe, which is much more ecological.’ To which I normally reply that this is not true - all the trucks loaded with wine from Spain or Italy (especially the South) for example are most probably worse off in terms of ecological balance in comparison with the container ships that come almost straight out of the heart of the wine lands at the harbour (depending where the wine is produced). However, I additionally tell these ‘non-customers’ that, according to this wonderful environmental behaviour in not buying wine from overseas, they should apply this strategy to everything – computers, cars, clothes, food products and whatever consumer goods are produced in the Far East or wherever; some households, offices, fridges would look pretty empty.... But I am aware that this statement does not make them buy wines from overseas, including our wines from South Africa. |