At the office or out for a lazy coffee, most people would be shocked to discover that the more than 400 million disposable beverage and coffee cups Australians use each year for less than half an hour each, end up in landfill. And there they sit for the next 50 years or so. The reason disposable coffee cups sit in landfill is because many are plastic lined paper and as you may know, plastic doesn't break down.Effectively what happens is that the paper degrades, but the plastic doesn't. And so, a disposable cup is not disposable at all. And then there are the plastic lids, which no one ever seems to talk about. Don't even get me started on those.
The logical thing to do is to get a seal-able, reusable coffee cup. There are increasing numbers of beautiful brands and types around. BUT WHAT IF YOU REUSABLE CUP WASN'T JUST FOR COFFEE? WHAT IF YOU ALSO USED IT TO PUT YOUR MORNING TEA IN WHEN YOU LEFT FOR WORK OR YOUR RUBBISH IN TO BRING HOME? WHAT IF SELLERS OF SMALLER SIZED PRODUCTS OFFERED REUSABLE CUPS AS PACKAGING AT A DISCOUNTED RATE, INSTEAD OF ALL THAT BUBBLE WRAP. NOW YOU ARE TALKING! Some reusable cups are made of glass while others are made from Polypropylene and Silicon LDPE. The non glass variety are tough and reasonably light and would make a rather excellent packaging product. Polypropylene and Silicon LDPE cups can be easily recycled when they reach end of life, usually after 3-5 years of use and won't break or crush. Most coffee shops sell reusable cups and increasing numbers of shops will give you a discount off your coffee for filling a reusable cup. Would you join with us in asking your online sellers to offer packaging in reusable cups as well?
Disposable beverage and coffee cups have a polystyrene lining to prevent the cup from going soggy when it is filled with hot liquid. It is this lining which renders disposable coffee cups unrecyclable. Reusable coffee cups are generally microwave and dishwasher safe. Most reusable cups seal well so you can also use them for storage of your morning tea or if you are a Mum, I can vouch for them being an excellent place to store that wet face wipe until you get home!
Do a friend a favour and give them a reusable cup on the next gift giving occasion. Reusable cups are beautiful presents and you get the added bonus of reduced waste!