Virgin Cork | Fromcork Portugal

Virgin Cork

Known as virgin cork, the raw material for cork products is harvested from the cork oak trees, either the evergreen Quercus suber or the deciduous Quercus occidentalis. The trees typically reach a height between 12 and 18 meters and a trunk circumference of 2 to 3 meters. Virtually all of the world's commercial cork trees grow in the western Mediterranean region and the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal's cork forests only account about one third of the existing trees but are the most productive: nearly half of the world's harvested cork is produced in Portugal.

Comprehensive Market Knowledge and Careful Selection

And at Fromcork we know where the best spots are located, which are the producers of the finest cork and how to select the right materials. A cork tree is ready for its first harvest when it is about 20 years old but the first harvest is always of poor quality and only suited to make agglomerated cork products. Subsequent harvests occur with nine years intervals, when the cork layer reaches a thickness of 2 to 5 centimeters. The harvest from a young tree yields about 16 kg of cork, while the yield for an older tree may reach 225 kg. The second harvest is the best cork that the oak will produce in its entire life and its called «amadia». That's the finest cork we can get.

Our company is well-known both by its comprehensive market knowledge and careful selection of raw materials. When the harvest is done, cork planks need to be stacked in dark cellars to allow them to dry and cure under controlled humidity for some weeks. After that, they are finally trimmed to a uniform, rectangular shape and ready to be sorted by quality. Only the finest quality virgin cork is chosen to make natural cork products. Poorer quality virgin material is only suited to produce composition or agglomerated cork. At Fromcork we always aim to deliver the best solution to our clients needs.