New film! #wastenot: the compostable solution to coffee cup recycling

Here’s our new animation – watch and share to help us spread the message far and wide.

There’s been a lot of talk in the news recently on the problem of coffee cup recycling. Hugh’s War on Waste reported the shocking statistic that less than 1 in 400 cups in the UK are recycled, despite many claiming to be recyclable. That’s a big problem when  more than 7 million a day are used, with the vast majority ending up in landfill or incineration. And it’s not just cups – the same applies to a lot of the takeaway packaging we use every day.

The problem? Conventional takeaway packaging uses a mix of materials (plastic, card, films, metals). For example, conventional coffee cups are made of card lined with plastic. Separately, plastic and card are easy to recycle. But combined, the card contaminates the plastics recycling and the plastic contaminates the card recycling. Then in use, add in the food inevitable residues, and the result is a huge recycling problem.

The solution? Compostable packaging. If the whole package, including all the materials, can be recycled with food waste, there is no issue. No contamination, no sorting. Vegware’s compostable cups are made from plants, not plastic, and can be recycled along with their compostable lids with food waste.

Now is the time to switch to a real, sustainable solution to the UK’s waste problem. Help us spread the message by sharing the video far and wide. On Twitter? Use #wastenot to join the discussion with @vegware.

We’ve already helped swathes of Canary Wharf, UK universities and huge office blocks go zero waste in foodservice. Get in touch to find out how we can help you, too.

Vegware at the University of Cambridge – catering for zero waste from Vegware on Vimeo.