anu
Three US coffee competitors have shelved their rivalry and joined forces in search of the greater good - an environmentally-sustainable coffee cup.
It might as well be the Holy Grail. Neither Joey Cups and his team of 12, nor anyone else in the industry, have been able to find it. So now they have decided to join forces. For the first time, Dunkin', Starbucks, and Tim Horton are working together to conquer the sustainable container. On Earth Day this April, the competitors convened with cup manufacturers, waste haulers, and municipal officials at a cup summit held at MIT.
Since then, they have been sharing prototypes of innovative designs, researching ways to make it financially worthwhile for communities to recycle used coffee cups, and designing a pilot program for a waste-free zone at Faneuil Hall Marketplace where everything would be recycled or composted.
"We are fiercely competitive but we really want to differentiate ourselves on the quality of our product and level of service in stores,'' said Jim Hanna, director of environmental impact at Starbucks, which hosted the cup summit. "Sustainability is a problem we all have to solve together.''
Temperatures are also rising elsewhere amidst preparations for the world's biggest coffee morning on Friday 24 September, a charity move in aid of MacMillan Cancer Support.
Despite being made up of recycled material, Starbucks cups are technically not recyclable due to the waxy coating. Where many local coffee shops have begun to use recyclable cups at a higher cost, Starbucks lists on their website that they will not introduce eco-cups until 2015.
There are also limitations on materials used to create environmentally friendly cups. The US Food and Drug Administration restrict how much post-consumer recycled fibber can be used in products that come in contact with food. Other cutting-edge containers can't be readily manufactured in the amounts needed by coffee chains, or they fail to meet performance standards.
The Starbucks Beta Cup challenge last year encouraged consumers to come up with ideas on how to eliminate disposable cups. The winner, Karma Cup, was a concept rather than a product; it suggested a rewards scheme for customers using reusable mugs. - 24553
It might as well be the Holy Grail. Neither Joey Cups and his team of 12, nor anyone else in the industry, have been able to find it. So now they have decided to join forces. For the first time, Dunkin', Starbucks, and Tim Horton are working together to conquer the sustainable container. On Earth Day this April, the competitors convened with cup manufacturers, waste haulers, and municipal officials at a cup summit held at MIT.
Since then, they have been sharing prototypes of innovative designs, researching ways to make it financially worthwhile for communities to recycle used coffee cups, and designing a pilot program for a waste-free zone at Faneuil Hall Marketplace where everything would be recycled or composted.
"We are fiercely competitive but we really want to differentiate ourselves on the quality of our product and level of service in stores,'' said Jim Hanna, director of environmental impact at Starbucks, which hosted the cup summit. "Sustainability is a problem we all have to solve together.''
Temperatures are also rising elsewhere amidst preparations for the world's biggest coffee morning on Friday 24 September, a charity move in aid of MacMillan Cancer Support.
Despite being made up of recycled material, Starbucks cups are technically not recyclable due to the waxy coating. Where many local coffee shops have begun to use recyclable cups at a higher cost, Starbucks lists on their website that they will not introduce eco-cups until 2015.
There are also limitations on materials used to create environmentally friendly cups. The US Food and Drug Administration restrict how much post-consumer recycled fibber can be used in products that come in contact with food. Other cutting-edge containers can't be readily manufactured in the amounts needed by coffee chains, or they fail to meet performance standards.
The Starbucks Beta Cup challenge last year encouraged consumers to come up with ideas on how to eliminate disposable cups. The winner, Karma Cup, was a concept rather than a product; it suggested a rewards scheme for customers using reusable mugs. - 24553
About the Author:
Researchers are still trying to find easily produced, economically viable biodegradable cups but for now we will have to make do with the environmentally unfriendly insulated cups we are used to.
0 comments:
Post a Comment