Oeneo reduces Diam closure carbon footprint

Closure producer, Oeneo Bouchage, claims to have reduced the carbon footprint of its Diam technical closure by 12 per cent, bringing it closer in line to the carbon footprint of natural cork.

The news follows the 2007 release of Oeneo’s first carbon footprint study into the impact of closures on the environment. The research revealed that the Diam closure, dressed with a PVC capsule, had a carbon footprint of 4,253 kg of equivalent CO2 per tonne.

Since the release of the results, Oeneo has taken steps to further reduce CO2 emissions in production of the closure. In particular, there has been improvement across the board in energy consumption and in optimising energy efficiency through renewable sources such as recycling cork dust to produce energy for production, and a reduction of incoming consumable materials.

Commenting on the research results, which have been ratified by the French Environmental Agency, Oeneo sales director Dean Banister said: “Since 2006 production of Diam has increased four-fold, however the actual carbon footprint of total production has increased by only 3 per cent. In real terms, this represents a 60 per cent reduction in our total carbon footprint by volume output. Moving forward, we remain committed to continuing to reduce our carbon footprint through constantly evaluating our supply chain in order to further reduce CO2 emissions.“

Oeneo has also announced the implementation of a restructured environmental policy designed to meet current and future environmental challenges. The policy encourages a proactive internal approach to control over energy consumption and carbon footprint, recycling of cork sub-products and waste, control over industrial risks and the design of more environmentally responsible products through investment in research and development.

1 August 2009 - Felicity Murray