Billions of disposable cups are thrown away every year around the world. It's estimated that very few of them, less than 0.25 percent, ever end-up being recycled and that the majority will eventually find their way to a landfill somewhere.
Some of the most popular items frequently found at the landfill are items like plastic bags, plastic straws, single-use cups, bottle caps, and cigarette butts.
They have a goal that all takeaway cups should be recyclable by 2023 and if that goal isn't met then they have proposed an outright ban on the product. They will also be looking to have entrepreneurs in the coffee market pay more for the cost of disposing cups.
Starbucks and Mcdonald's have already responded to the pressure. Starbucks said it will be trialing an extra 5p charge on its single-use cups for the next few months in at least 20 different cafes in London.
And it's not just in the UK. McDonald's has also announced its goal to eliminate foam and plastic cups from their cups in the US as well, with eventually all their packaging being made from recycled materials by 2020 for every location of theirs.
Many retailers have sought to introduce a ban or an extra fee on plastic bags or single-use cups. But some say that the levy isn't enough to address the problem and that businesses themselves should do more to shoulder the cost.
Is the extra 5p or 25p really going to cover all the costs of recycling the cups?
Not everyone is concerned about recycling of course or believes in the merits of the act.
You'll find folks on either side of the aisle when it comes to the recycling discussion and ongoing debate about the effectiveness thereof. Critics have suggested that recycling efforts produce even more waste and pollution in the process of trying to be clean, that we're not saving any resources by doing it, and they have frequently negated the claim that we're running out of landfill space.
Despite the critique, proponents of recycling still suggest that it takes less energy to produce products from recycled materials than it does from virgin materials.
Though, recycling critics maintain that the best (most cost-effective) option is still to bury the garbage under the ground. Some even suggest that the act of recycling might be the biggest waste of natural and human resources that the people have been concerning themselves with.
No doubt there are many who might agree that there is a case for addressing the waste that we produce, but how we go about tackling it is where we will always run into disagreement. We can use force, via taxes and bans, or we can try and come up with voluntary solutions.
To try and get more value out of recycling, a growing number of waste sites have been transforming themselves over the years into energy facilities. Right now there are over 80 different waste-to-energy facilities around the U.S, about 400 of them in Europe, and hundreds more in places like Japan and China. In the US, these sites are producing enough energy to help power over 2 million homes every year.
There are a variety of businesses that are dedicated to producing biodegradable packaging items.
And recyclable single-use cups are already being trialed in numerous places. One company, known as Scyphus, has been working on options for a 100 percent biodegradable cup and container. Right now they are the leader in manufactured paper cups for the UK and by the end of next year they hope to have the PE coated paper cup completely phased out.
In some areas, various businesses have launched projects that seek to have customers put a deposit down to use their reusable cup, which can later be returned to any participating coffee shop location. This is a creative compliment to the popular discount that some stores offer for customers to bring in their own cup.
To try and cut back on the single-use beverage cups, water refilling stations have been utilized in places like Germany as well. The hope with these is that people will opt for refilling at one of the stations rather than looking to buy another cup, that has a life cycle of about 15-20 minutes.
A growing number of companies are looking to opt for more sustainable choices. And there have been prominent beverage and food companies that have vowed to phase out plastic cups and straws, looking for greener options. We've even seen edible straw options come to market that consumers can eat after they're finished drinking, along with the idea for edible water bottles. A variety of edible food packaging is available on the market today.
Entrepreneurs have gotten creative about coming up with various ways to try and tackle what many see as a big problem.
There might be many people who want to work toward cutting back unnecessary waste and trying to minimize pollution, but perhaps the government isn't the best agent to be tasked with this responsibility.
Pics:
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Sources:
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/news/latte-levy-disposable-coffee-cups-tax-cut-waste-uk-recycling-chief-david-palmer-jones-suez-a8143336.html
http://www.popularmechanics.com/science/environment/a3736/4290631/
https://www.wired.com/2016/06/banning-plastic-bags-great-world-right-not-fast/
http://www.nytimes.com/1996/06/30/magazine/recycling-is-garbage.html
https://www.newfoodmagazine.com/news/63788/latte-levy-industry-reactions-25p-charge/
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2018/jan/05/mps-25p-charge-takeaway-coffee-cups-possible-ban-environmental-audit-committee-report
http://beta.latimes.com/food/sns-dailymeal-1866400-drink-mcdonalds-starbucks-cup-sustainability-011218-20180112-story.html
https://www.aol.com/article/finance/2018/01/11/mcdonalds-is-making-a-big-change-to-its-soft-drinks-in-2018/23331168/
http://nordic.businessinsider.com/mcdonalds-ditches-foam-cups-packaging-2018-1
http://mashable.com/2018/01/10/starbucks-uk-5p-charge/#TjDwcSQozaqm
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/news/latte-levy-disposable-coffee-cups-tax-cut-waste-uk-recycling-chief-david-palmer-jones-suez-a8143336.html
http://www.cbc.ca/radio/day6/episode-372-china-s-waste-ban-syrian-cuisine-oprah2020-the-colour-of-2018-letterman-returns-and-more-1.4479480/wasted-what-happens-when-china-no-longer-wants-our-trash-1.4479601
http://www.digitaljournal.com/news/world/china-s-waste-ban-goes-into-effect-no-more-foreign-garbage/article/511213
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/does-burning-garbage-to-produce-energy-make-sense/
https://mises.org/library/economics-recycling
https://mises.org/library/recycling-myth
https://mises.org/wire/government-recycling-programs-waste-valuable-resources
https://www.forbes.com/forbes/2010/0628/rebuilding-waste-management-energy-trash-waste-not.html#42da12cbe6ac
https://inews.co.uk/news/environment/finally-coffee-cup-can-easily-recycled/
https://www.journalism.co.uk/press-releases/scyphus-champions-100-biodegradable-paper-cups-and-containers/s66/a715898/
http://www.hamburg-news.hamburg/en/health-life-sciences/hamburgs-initiatives-tackling-rubbish-mounds/
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2015/sep/10/edible-water-bottle-to-cause-a-splash-at-eu-sustainability-awards
https://www.foodbev.com/news/disposable-packaging-company-invents-range-of-edible-straws/
https://www.foodbev.com/news/diageo-pernod-ricard-pledge-eliminate-plastic-straw-use/
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I will try to reduce my usage. Promise
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The intent isn’t to levy a 25p charge but to force the industry to find alternatives. Cups are currently plastic coated so very difficult to recycle. The threat of a levy should force the industry to find a better alternative.
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You have received an upvote from @livesustainably. I promote and curate content that encourages and educates others in living sustainably.
I also run competitions for those making the world a better place. Check out this weeks reducing plastic competition here
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Great job, my friend @doitvoluntarily! Thank you for sharing!
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Re-steemed and upvoted. Have a great day!
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I am in Poland, and they have introduced a ban on cheap carrier bags, so you have to buy one that lasts for years, still it is plastic though, and some supermarkets are also refusing to let customers take things out in cardboard boxes, as the government say the boxes must be recycled.
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The waste problem has become a serious problem on earth. I strongly agree with the steps taken by the merchant. That is another quote by giving a rebate for who brought it back and can be reused after being washed. At least that way has reduced the amount of waste potential. Very good article Thank you very much for sharing your knowledge @doitvoluntarily.
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When I was a kid in Denmark (late 1960s to mid-70s) I remember going to the trash burning plant where the heat was actually used to heat steam that provided heating ("remote heating") for several subdivisions. It only made sense.
I live in the US now, but we go back to Denmark on holiday on a regular basis. It's amazing how much more garbage we generate in the US, just two people living in a house, compared to two people living in a house in Denmark. Just the waste from packaging alone is amazing in the US.
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"...but perhaps the government isn't the best agent to be tasked with this responsibility." That's the statement that nails it. In fact, I can't think of any case where government is the best agent. Given a chance, most people will opt for less waste and peer pressure will do the rest. I'm in an area where I see so much impractical and costly approach to recycling that I have grown to be very cynical about the benefits of what is in place now at, I must add, excessive cost to taxpayers.
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In fact, this is a huge environmental problem of our time. how often do we think about it, buying a coffee to perk me up. We almost never think about the consequences. The result is tons of garbage left on the ground of unprocessed trash. Which decomposes very long time. Of course, we have to think about the solution. I'm glad more and more countries are looking for ways to address this issue. The consequences of our indifference and inaction could be dire.
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very nice post
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Proper waste disposal is everyone's concern if there is a way to minimize if not eradicate the problem of solid waste then it should gain the support of the people. This is simply a brilliant initiative to solve the problem of solid waste @doitvoluntarily!
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Great post! It's definitely a very important thing to bring awareness to.
I'm certainly not a supporter of Starbucks or McDonald's by any means, but I am proud of them for taking initiative in the matter, considering the amount of volume they produce.
Related topic - I heard something years back about Vancouver attempting to pass a cigarette-butt-redemption-program-type-thing. I keep forgetting to look back into the issue so I have no idea whether or not it passed, but it's definitely a great idea :)
Thanks for your article! I just stumbled upon you and am definitely going to keep up with your writing !
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Itis a good post. I like this
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Very interesting of you .
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Its great to see more and more innovations trying to reduce waste going to landfill, even some Nordic countries have become so efficient at waste to energy conversion they are buying waste from other countries
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This reminds me of what one of my managers told me years ago that people are creatures of habit and comfort. They'll go with whatever is easiest or most familiar. Even though the mall where I work has set up bins for recycling people don't seperate their trash. It comes down to the individual such as my sister who started composting last spring.
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Well written informative post.
As far as the cups go ~ this problem could be solved tomorrow if the big chain companies chose to be more responsible. Goodness knows their profits are huge enough to invest in viable solutions.
I refuse to frequent these greedy chains and to be honest don't actually get the need to takeaway a beverage to quaff on the hoof ~ but that is only me!
Thanks for spreading the word.
Please feel free to pop by mine if you have a spare moment ;)
xox
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I wonder if a return for cash scheme could work in this case, as it does with cans and plastic bottles. This way people could get their 5p/25p back and there would be a near universal collection of the cups for recycling. Or there could be a great new venture for an entrepreneur, looking to make energy from the cups. Similar to what Sweden is doing on a national scale: https://www.blueoceanstrategy.com/blog/trash-treasure-sweden-recycling-revolution/
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Thank you always for coming to us with all that is new and wonderful, good luck brother. Can you view the articles I publish, I hope you like it
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I’m sure that this is one of those issues that future generations will look back on with total bewilderment at the thought that we could get ourselves into this position
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great Post
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Happy to see this subject on Steemit @doitvoluntarily because it is important. We really have to account for our waste. One thing that puzzles me here in CA is that they charge us a dime for paper bags and plastic bags. You would think the paper ones would be free because they are biodegradable and we can replant. I'm not sure what use plastics still have in this regard
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You would have to charge a dollar for a cup for indifferent people to start caring about things like bringing their own coffee cup, thus state of this planet is no surprise.... My favorite coffee shop in Vancouver (JJ Bean) gives you 15cents cheaper coffee is you bring your own. None of the big chains (starbucks, waves etc.) do it. Again, this starts at educational level- teach your kids what waste means and where it goes. Thanks for great article @doitvoluntarily!
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Nice article
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It is a case of conscience, our mentality has to change, to understand that we were affecting all those around us. and that in the long term the garbage and pollution will affect everyone worldwide, a solution would be something as simple as having a folding cup and carrying one in our car or purse and in this way trying to change the mind of many people, maybe not let's change the whole world but if we change those around us we will have done something bigger than others. thx
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This is third time today this subject has come up for me. Must be a charm. I am already cognizant of not using disposable cups, but I could still make a clean break, so I am going to use this post as my inspiration!
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please vist my blog sir..encourage me.. i request you sir..suggest me.. i will follow you
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Hemp is solution, but it's very dangerous drug, because it's prohibited :D
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This is simply the taxman coming by the back door. A crafty way for the government to raise more revenue - which will not solve any "cup problem".
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