When we gather together next month in Portland, more than 350 of us will sip, blog, and share the latest and greatest in the world of wine. Throughout the weekend, corks will be “popped” and wines will be poured – leaving a huge number of used closures and empty bottles that might easily be tossed into the nearest trash can. Luckily, you will have better options! Our host hotel, the DoubleTree Portland, is Oregon’s First Green Seal Certified hotel. We will have bottle recycling containers located near our conference area and ask that you help us make sure used bottles get in the proper containers.

Last May, I wrote a post about whether a green company, like TerraCycle, should partner with companies that make tobacco, firearms or alcohol. Our business relies on taking waste that has traditionally been considered nonrecyclable and finding ways to recycle it. We do this by running national collection and solution programs for specific types of waste, and we have been partnering with the alcohol industry for a few years now. Our alcohol industry partnerships began with a national wine-cork program that has collected roughly two million corks and recycled them into products such as cork boards, shoes and flooring. This program is financed by a major synthetic cork company, Nomacorc, and will expand into Italy later this year. We also recently began a program to collect wine pouches with the Clif Family Winery. While we have not yet partnered with anyone in the firearms industry — I’m hoping we will collect shotgun shells at some point — we have been attempting to work with the tobacco industry for some time. And I am happy to say that we recently signed our first and second tobacco deals (both programs will start in a few weeks). One is with Canada’s largest tobacco company, the other with one of America’s largest tobacco companies. Both programs will allow TerraCycle to collect and recycle cigarette butts and other cigarette-related waste.

Total Wine & More has teamed up with TerraCycle, the world’s leader in the collection and reuse of nonrecyclable post-consumer waste. Partnering additionally with Nomacorc, the global leader in alternative wine closures, Total Wine & More will place collection bins in select stores where customers can drop off wine closures to be “upcycled” into eco-friendly cork boards, all produced via low-energy-consumption means by the TerraCycle Cork Brigade program. Beginning in California, Total Wine & More hopes to expand the program throughout many of its 73 wine superstores across 11 states.

Total Wine & More has teamed up with TerraCycle, the world’s leader in the collection and reuse of nonrecyclable post-consumer waste. Partnering additionally with Nomacorc, the global leader in alternative wine closures, Total Wine & More will place collection bins in select stores where customers can drop off wine closures to be “upcycled” into eco-friendly cork boards, all produced via low-energy-consumption means by the TerraCycle Cork Brigade program. Beginning in California, Total Wine & More hopes to expand the program throughout many of its 73 wine superstores across 11 states.

Nomacorc, the world’s leading producer of alternative wine closures, is celebrating the second anniversary of its partnership with TerraCycle, Inc., the world’s leader in the collection and reuse of nonrecyclable waste. The companies have worked together to expand the Cork Brigade™, a free program that collects synthetic and natural wine closures and “upcycles” them into corkboards for the home or office. Since the launch of the Cork Brigade in August 2008, more than 1,000 individuals and organizations such as liquor stores, restaurants and wineries have joined the Cork Brigade collection program. Nomacorc and TerraCycle have diverted more than 2 million closures from landfills and raised thousands of dollars for charitable organizations across the United States. The first upcycled product made from Nomacorc closures, an 18x18-inch corkboard, is available at national retailers and online at www.TerraCycleShop.com.

ABC also partners with Nomacorc and TerraCycle to recycle wine corks.

Launched in January, the charitable campaign asks only that you bring your used corks to any ABC Fine Wine & Spirits store, which in turn gives the corks to Normacorc and TerraCycle for recycling into such products as corkboard. And for every cork turned in to ABC, two cents is donated to charities chosen by the retailer — including UCP of Central Florida, which provides therapy and other services to children with disabilities.

With the Save the Corks program, ABC is teaming up with Nomacorc to upcycle and recycle the corks through TerraCycle. Natural and synthetic wine corks are accepted. In addition, for every cork turned in, 2 cents is then contributed to charities.  In one month alone, ABC rose over $750 for charity.

Raising money for children with special needs and saving our planet, one cork at a time. UCP of Central Florida, ABC Fine Wine & Spirits, Nomacorc and TerraCycle are saving the planet and raising money for children with special needs, one cork at a time.

Nomacorc has joined with TerraCycle to upcycle corks.