Is the environment a subject that concerns you? If, in your dual capacity as a citizen and consumer, you always strive to contribute to a healthier planet, you'll enjoy reading this article. In fact, by choosing a cork handbag, a cork wallet, or any other product from our collection, you are making an ecologically responsible, entirely eco-friendly decision.
In simple terms, choosing cork fashion products means supporting Montado (cork oak forests), and supporting Montado means protecting the Planet. It’s that simple. Read on to find out why.
Cork is nothing more than the bark of the cork oak tree (Quercus suber), which is harvested for the first time when the tree reaches 30 years of age and then every nine years. Cork oaks are magnificent trees found mainly in southwestern Europe (notably the Iberian Peninsula) and also in northeastern Africa.
Portugal stands out as the country with the largest cork oak forest area in the world and is also the world's largest exporter of cork, 80% of which is used for the production of stoppers, with cork oaks predominant in the vast expanses of the Alentejo plains and in the Algarve, in the south of the country. The cork oak forestMontado represents 21% of Portugal's forest area, and is responsible for approximately 50% of the world's cork production. It is an ecosystem of delicate balance protected by the country's legislation, which recently nominated it for World Heritage status, with a decision from UNESCO pending on this matter in 2018/19.
Cork oaks have been classified as Portugal's National Tree since 2011, and their felling is prohibited and penalised throughout the country. However, it is equally important to emphasise that cork harvesting does not harm the tree. On the contrary, it improves the health of cork oaks, which can live for up to 200 years. After each harvest, the tree regrows a new layer of cork of the same quality as the previous one.
Therefore, cork is renewable (it grows back after harvesting). But it is also recyclable. From the recycling of cork stoppers, for example, construction materials are produced (cork is an exceptional insulator) and also for the automotive and aerospace industries, among others. Cork is also 100% biodegradable.
Fortunately, humanity's environmental awareness has developed significantly in recent years, largely due to the issue of climate change. Today, most of us are aware of the importance of our day-to-day decisions for the future of the planet, and the fashion industry, either by choice or due to consumer pressure, also feels the need to find more sustainable and environmentally and animal-friendly materials.
In this respect, cork stands out from all other materials and has no rival. It is 100%% nature, a green alternative to synthetic products. But be careful, it's not because it's a 100%% natural product that cork loses out in quality to other materials. It's quite the opposite. Using a cork bag is using nature, but the properties of this material are unique and impressive (discover them in cork: know the properties that bring it closer to perfection).
Extraordinarily flexible, cork can and is already advantageously replacing polluting products traditionally used by the fashion industry. It is an eco-friendly alternative that, in addition to its own characteristics, also has two additional advantages to consider for all who care about the planet: its extraction has an incomparably lower ecological footprint than the production of plastics, and in the manufacturing process itself, all waste is used to make other materials. As Lavoisier said, “nothing is lost, everything is transformed,” and this maxim is especially true in the case of cork.
Here at Montado, cork is our material of choice: it's part of our culture as Portuguese people and is at the genesis of our brand's creation. We've been working in the fashion accessories sector for 40 years. With the creation of Montado, we began making eco-friendly fashion and contributing to a better world. And we are so proud of that. We owe it to this incredible material, cork, which we work with passion.
Cork oak forests are an extraordinary example of the balance between environmental protection and economic development. In other words, they are a magnificent example of sustainable development, the foundation of the economy of the future. Do you know how many trees are felled to extract cork or to make cork fashion products like ours? Zero. Nada. None. And that is very significant. The environmental importance of Montado is great and can be approached from various angles.
Let's start with global warming. It is estimated that every year cork oak forests retain around 14 million tonnes of CO2, a precious contribution to reducing the greenhouse gases that are emitted into the atmosphere and are the cause of climate change.
Quem não conhece o Montado pode ser levado a pensar: mais um motivo para não andarem a retirar cortiça destas árvores! Mas isso não é problema, bem pelo contrário. É que está provado que o processo de regeneração natural que sucede ao descortiçamento não apenas melhora a saúde das árvores como ainda aumenta a sua capacidade de retenção de CO2 – após a extração da cortiça os sobreiros passam a reter 5 vezes mais CO2! Impressionante, não? E mais, os produtos transformados de cortiça mantêm a capacidade para fixar Dióxido de Carbono!
The Montado conserves soil and prevents desertification Cork oak forests play a fundamental role in soil conservation and are a factor of the utmost importance for the prevention of desertification in Portugal.
Let's not be under any illusions, there is no environment without an economy, nor an economy without an environment. The definition of sustainable development points precisely to this reality. And cork combines these two aspects perfectly: it is economically viable and environmentally responsible. As a successful agro-forestry system, it contributes to the improvement of the quality of life of the populations who live from it and prevents the depopulation of a rugged and arid territory.
On the other hand, by returning nutrients from deeper soil layers to the surface through fallen leaves, it increases the amount of organic matter in the soil, which is essential for making the soil fertile, increasing water retention, and regulating the hydrological cycle. The canopy of cork oaks also helps to prevent erosion and reduce evaporation due to their immense capacity for water retention. Evergreen, this tree canopy is also responsible for creating a microclimate that reduces extreme temperatures and extends the sowing season.
Taking into account the climate of these regions and the poverty of the soil, there is no equally sustainable alternative to cork. Entire villages owe their livelihoods to the wealth it creates and distributes.
The Montado is a hotspot of life. According to the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), “cork oak forests support one of the highest levels of biodiversity among forest habitats and the highest level of plant diversity found anywhere in the world.” What is the best way to preserve this wealth of fauna and flora? Prefer cork products wherever they can exist as an alternative to synthetics.
Equated with paradises such as the Amazon, the African savanna or Borneo, the fragile Montado is considered one of the 35 most important global ecosystems for biodiversity conservation. More than two hundred animal species and 135 plant species find ideal conditions for their survival there. Some of these species are rare, others are on the verge of extinction, as is the case with Bonelli's eagle, the Imperial eagle, the Black stork, and the Iberian lynx, the world's most threatened feline.
There are over 160 species of birds in the Montado, which find shelter all year round in the evergreen canopy of cork oaks and a refuge for nesting. This is also the ideal habitat for 24 species of reptiles and amphibians and another 37 species of mammals. And millions of migratory birds find a temporary habitat there.
But the wealth of Montado is even more impressive with regard to flora. Just think about this: there are about 12,000 endemic plants in Montado, a figure that represents about 50% of the total found in these forests, making them third worldwide in terms of their endemic plant ratio.
By choosing cork products, you are feeding a virtuous cycle beneficial to the economy and the planet. You are protecting a fragile but enormously important ecosystem for people, animals, and plants – an example of sustainable development, of a future that is desired to be closer.
More specifically, by preferring to buy a cork handbag instead of a synthetic one, you are contributing to the fight against global warming, preventing depopulation and desertification, preserving biodiversity, and contributing to the well-being of the many who depend on this economic activity. And remember: no trees are felled by the cork industry in Portugal. None.
And don't forget another thing: cork is beautiful! 🙂
