Reusable coffee cup myth that needs to end

This one thing got many people through lockdown but it’s causing untold damage and the “unsafe” myth around it needs to end now.

Covid put a stop to a lot of things. Holidays, partying, school. The one thing many Aussies could and did cling on to was their daily coffee but, unfortunately the way we consumed these coffees put a stop to something else. Keep cups.

Over the last few years the campaign, led by Responsible Cafes, to encourage reusable coffee cups had been gaining momentum. 63.8 million single use coffee cups were diverted from landfill as more cafes jumped on board, offering discounts to customers who brought their own.

It was a huge win because 1.2 billion coffee cups, which are not recyclable, were going in the bin every year, making it one of Australia’s top waste issues.

The pandemic saw many people abandon keep cups over confusion about whether it was safe to use them.

But then Covid happened and all of that stopped. Cafes, worried about spreading germs, were suddenly reluctant to allow keep cups.

“It was so frustrating,” said Marion Vigot, the new head of Responsible Cafes. “We had achieved so much and this one thing took us back years.”

But now the science is in and it looks like keep cups are back on the menu.

“Multiple scientists and researchers have shown [Covid] contamination is very low risk with [keep] cups,” Marion said.

Walking with a coffee was many people’s way to cope during lockdown. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Flavio Brancaleone

Sadly, now all of those single use coffee cups from lockdown are in landfill and can’t be recycled.

In June 2020 over 125 public health experts signed a statement detailing how to use reusable products safely, with focus on good hygiene practices like disinfected surfaces, clean cups and washed hands.

It also said disposable products present a similar issue to reusable ones.

Marion’s aim now is to get the existing network of 5000 Responsible Cafes back on track with keep cups but she also has a bigger project in her sights.

“It’s time to extend our reach and focus on other items like single use cutlery, containers and straws,” she said.

Marion Vigot from Responsible Cafes. Picture: Supplied.

With new legislation, many of these single-use items will be banned over the coming years but Marion wants the change to start now.

“We’re launching Bring Your Own Friday in 2022,” Marion said. The ongoing campaign will encourage people to bring something reusable for their Friday takeaway to prevent a single-use item going into landfill.

Another business aiming to stop coffee cups going to landfill is Simply Cups but it is approaching the problem from a different angle.

It has developed the tech to recycle the previously un-recyclable coffee cup into products including asphalt, building materials, park benches and even keep cups.

“It was a shock to me when I discovered the two cups of coffee I’d been drinking for most of my memorable life had been going to landfill,” Brendan Lee, the driving force behind the organisation, said.

That was seven years ago and since then he has worked with the sustainable solutions business, Closed Loop, to research and pilot a recycling program.

“We needed to be able to show we could collect cups in large quantities so we had the material for processing,” Brendan said.

Luke Fraser, CEO of Howard Smith Wharves (an entertainment precinct in Brisbane), Trevor Evans (MP) and Brendan Lee of Simply Cups.

Simply Cups turns single use coffee cups into building materials and keep cups.

Simply Cups set up collection areas in high traffic spots like office buildings and then 7/11 stores came on board. Now you can register your business or school on simplycups.com.au to become a collection point.

“In our first year we collected 1 million cups [to recycle] and in our third year we were up to 12 million. We were pleasantly surprised at how people embraced the program. The key is to make it simple and convenient,” Brendan said.

Ironically Covid has affected Simply Cups growth because coffee-drinkers were working at home and not near their 1260 recycling collection points.

But Brendan is confident growth will accelerate again in the next few years.

“Our goal is to collect 100 million cups a year, which is still only around 10 per cent of what Australians are using,” he said. “Our technology will also start being used for other plastic-lined paper products like noodle and juice boxes, ice cream tubs and bread bags.”

“It’s exciting to find ways to reuse the fibres to make better products. I would encourage avoidance of these single-use items where possible but we need to cater for everyone.”

Emma Levett is a freelance writer.

This content is created in sponsorship with Volvo.

Originally published as Reusable coffee cup myth that needs to end