|
Post by romily on Mar 11, 2024 7:20:09 GMT -5
Question for all of you who get take out coffee – is there actually a way to bring your own insulated mug or so, for them to put the coffee in?
I have been litter picking again yesterday, and after plastic bottles and drink cans discarded paper cups are the most likely item to find – Often a pain, as the bottom is paper and could be recycled but not the plastic cover.
So am wondering if there is any awareness of the waste being created, I don’t even want to think about how much waste is being produced in a big city with take out drinks. And if anybody thought of way to avoiding this (reusable cups, bringing your own cups)? I don’t drink coffee, so don’t have a clue myself.
|
|
|
Post by wombatrois on Mar 11, 2024 7:39:17 GMT -5
In Australia a lot of people use reusable cups. During Covid this wasn't possible, but it's back to normal now. I have a glass cup with a silicon band to hold, so not insulated, but I drink it straight away, so that's not an issue for me.
I'm fairly sure we have banned plastic coated cups so they can now be recyclable. Others may be able to confirm or deny this.
|
|
|
Post by romily on Mar 11, 2024 10:38:25 GMT -5
The cup itself is cardboard here so can be recycled - the top can't. Obviously nothing makes any difference if people just litter / throw them out of the car window.
|
|
|
Post by Liiisa on Mar 11, 2024 10:57:46 GMT -5
I have reusable coffee containers - two big ones, plus a little one for espresso that I use when I'm traveling. I'll admit to not being 100% good about bringing one with me when I'm getting coffee to go, though; another habit that got disrupted in the pandemic that I need to get together again.
But if a cup has had food in it (i.e., coffee with milk), it isn't recyclable, at least in our system.
|
|
|
Post by Queen on Mar 11, 2024 11:59:27 GMT -5
It's really common here.
Lots of places give you a discount for bringing your own cup.
|
|
|
Post by sprite on Mar 11, 2024 13:56:16 GMT -5
It's very common, but some people are jerks.
Also, some people do cram the cup into a full bin which then gets slammed by wind. But mostly, jerks.
I also think businesses which generate a lot of this waste need to start paying more, directly, into extra waste treatment/collection/bins.
|
|
|
Post by lillielangtry on Mar 11, 2024 14:23:28 GMT -5
Some of the "paper" cups also have a thin plastic coating to stop the hot liquid going straight through, so they're not easily recyclable.
Reusable cups are common here. My favourite is actually a Starbucks one that I picked up from a box on the street. It's insulated and works really well.
Some places also work on the German Pfand system and charge you a euro or so for a thicker plastic cup that can be returned for reuse.
|
|
|
Post by Webs on Mar 11, 2024 16:37:20 GMT -5
If the cup is lined with something shiney it's not recycable.
I need to start bringing my own cup.
|
|
|
Post by lisamnz on Mar 11, 2024 18:06:33 GMT -5
THis is something I know a LITTLE bit about.
Personally, I always take a reusable cup for my coffee or I drink it in store. Like Q said, a lot of cafes will give you a discount if you bring your own cup. There are also variations on cup libraries - my local cafe just down the road has a shelf of cups that you can use instead of a single-use cup, then just rinse it and take it back next time. There are also systems where a bunch of cafes will all use the same reusable cup, and you have an app that tracks how many cups you have on loan and you can return a used cup (doesn't need to be clean) to any of the participating cafes. Some of the apps are able to be used for other reusable items too, like bowls and plates.
Cardboard coffee cups are not just cardboard. They have to have a layer of something inside the cup to make them waterproof. It's either oil-based plastic or plant-based plastic (PLA). If PLA, the cup can be composted if the composting system gets hot enough for long enough. In many places cardboard coffee cups can be recycled, because the plastic layer is such a small % of the actual item - in Australia, the limit is 5% by weight.
But in NZ, all of our recycling sorting plants are set up to recognise paper items as being mostly flat, and cups are usually recognised by the machinery as being plastic - these are not, obviously, so they end up in the wrong place. So cardboard coffee cups are not able to be put into most recycling collections here and have to go to landfill instead. Except for the odd occasional one that has PLA liner, but there's hardly anywhere in NZ that composts those, so most of those go to landfill as well. More greenwashing.
|
|
|
Post by lisamnz on Mar 11, 2024 18:07:30 GMT -5
Oh and, in many places, you could still use a reusable cup during lockdowns. The cafes just needed to prepare your coffee contactless - which usually meant making it in a cup, and then pouring it into your takeaway cup without touching it. But most cafes couldn't be bothered to do that, so they said it wasn't allowed instead to justify their laziness.
|
|
|
Post by lisamnz on Mar 11, 2024 18:10:00 GMT -5
Some of the "paper" cups also have a thin plastic coating to stop the hot liquid going straight through, so they're not easily recyclable. I am not aware of a single paper/card coffee cup that is not lined with something. A cup simply made out of paper/card can't hold hot drinks. IT can barely hold plain water for any length of time. There is a company in NZ that reckons they have invented a 'plastic free' coffee cup, but they are still using a polymer-based liner - it's just technically not 'plastic'. Greenwashing, again.
|
|
|
Post by lisamnz on Mar 11, 2024 18:22:13 GMT -5
The cup itself is cardboard here so can be recycled - the top can't. Obviously nothing makes any difference if people just litter / throw them out of the car window. Also... I didn't think this was right, but thought I'd better check. Coffee cups are not generally accepted in kerbside recycling collections in England. They need to go to a specific coffee cup recycling collection point. This article has a bunch of useful info for the UK generally: www.gov.wales/landmark-rule-makes-manufacturers-responsible-waste-created-their-products
|
|
|
Post by Liiisa on Mar 11, 2024 19:51:58 GMT -5
The best thing to do is to get an espresso or a cappuccino and just drink it there in a ceramic cup, honestly.
|
|
|
Post by lisamnz on Mar 11, 2024 19:59:10 GMT -5
The best thing to do is to get an espresso or a cappuccino and just drink it there in a ceramic cup, honestly. yup. What really shits me is when people get their coffee in a takeaway cup 'just in case' and then sit there the whole time drinking it!
|
|
|
Post by fishface on Mar 11, 2024 22:57:37 GMT -5
I have reusable cups at home, work and in my car. I even have the little 'metal returnable at various locations'-cups And there are reusable cups in the staff kitchens in case people don't have their own.
Today I forgot entirely about all sources of cuppery but I needed my bean water so got a takeaway cup.
|
|
|
Post by lisamnz on Mar 11, 2024 23:18:51 GMT -5
Hey fish. listen out for me on newstalk zb tomorrow. talking about rubbish, of course.
(again again are the metal cups)
|
|
|
Post by whothingie on Mar 11, 2024 23:56:43 GMT -5
Hey fish. listen out for me on newstalk zb tomorrow. talking about rubbish, of course. (again again are the metal cups) Shall do.
|
|
|
Post by fishface on Mar 12, 2024 2:36:01 GMT -5
Oooh let me know the time and I will! I'll find it otherwise though
|
|
|
Post by romily on Mar 12, 2024 3:41:14 GMT -5
Interesting - I don't drink coffee so thought they could be recycled - obviously the dirty ones I pick up from the roadside when litter picking (and the amount of litter on roadsides seems to get worse every year!) go into my general waste.
McDonalds claims their drink cups can be recycled if rinsed out but am not sure how true it is. Obviously when picking them up from the street they go into general waste as well. the only stuff I put into recycling when I go litter picking are empty drink cans ( mostly beer cans, no surprise there) and empty plastic bottles (water / soft drinks) when they are clean aka not already driven over by a car / smashed into the dirt.
I should really take a picture of the round about close to a service station with restaurants, it's so littered right now you can barely see the grass. But I stay away from that as you are not allowed to pick litter on A roads, supposedly the council does - not that I see much evidence of that. It annoys me every time I drive to work, as I still can't wrap my head around people just throwing rubbish out of their car windows, or dropping it on the floor, sometimes when there is a bin close by.
|
|
|
Post by Queen on Mar 12, 2024 4:46:52 GMT -5
There's a new law here about recycling plastic - and now the cups at McDonalds can be reused. You can either buy a reusable one off them or you pay an extra 25 cents to cover cleaning the plastic beaker.
No clue about coffee though... because why would you go to McD for coffee. I'm basing this on a poster in McD's window...
In fact all single use plastic gets a surcharge, so if I order takeaway I pay an extra 10-25 cents per plastic box.
|
|
|
Post by Liiisa on Mar 12, 2024 5:35:03 GMT -5
I've heard McD's coffee is a perfectly reasonable choice if you need the bean and are out in the sticks or something.
|
|
|
Post by lillielangtry on Mar 12, 2024 6:17:28 GMT -5
McD's coffee used to be very reasonably priced and it wasn't awful. I haven't had it for years.
I do know that our McD's also have a reusable cup option now, I suspect this must be due to some kind of European legislation, but every time I have seen the menu it has not actually been available to select at my local branch (yes, sometimes I go in there).
|
|
|
Post by wombatrois on Mar 12, 2024 10:20:36 GMT -5
(please accept my apology in advance, I don't mean to offend)
I wouldn't be seen dead anywhere near a mcdonalds and certainly not for coffee. I don't care how good it may or may not be.
Your truly coffee snob
|
|
|
Post by Queen on Mar 12, 2024 12:52:47 GMT -5
I'm happy to offend... Not going to have coffee at McD's any time.
This is partly about the actual coffee and partly because I want the ambiance.
Signed Coffee Snob #2
|
|
|
Post by sprite on Mar 12, 2024 13:44:26 GMT -5
Mickey D's coffee is ok, but it's so freaking hot, I do not know how anyone in a moving vehicle drinks it. And if I wanted to drink my coffee indoors with shouty teens, I'd get a job in a secondary school again.
Thank you LisaMNZ!
I don't always remember to take containers with me when I'm doing food shopping at our little local places. Most of them now use recycled packaging with a plant-based liner that can, in theory, go into our local food waste program--but not home compost. I sometimes use these packages to start off plants, because they will, with time, disintegrate in the ground.
|
|
|
Post by lisamnz on Mar 12, 2024 15:34:46 GMT -5
Oooh let me know the time and I will! I'll find it otherwise though Oh, no particular time - it was a pre-recorded interview that they wanted for something about Chch they're trying to stir up trouble about. I always disappoint radio interviewers because I refute their drama and make it clear that it's actually a non-story.
|
|
|
Post by lisamnz on Mar 12, 2024 15:40:26 GMT -5
Mickey D's coffee is ok, but it's so freaking hot, I do not know how anyone in a moving vehicle drinks it. And if I wanted to drink my coffee indoors with shouty teens, I'd get a job in a secondary school again. Thank you LisaMNZ! I don't always remember to take containers with me when I'm doing food shopping at our little local places. Most of them now use recycled packaging with a plant-based liner that can, in theory, go into our local food waste program--but not home compost. I sometimes use these packages to start off plants, because they will, with time, disintegrate in the ground. An emerging issue with some of this packaging is PFAS - a persistent chemical that bioaccumulates and has negative health impacts. It's the type of polymer that was/is used in furniture stain-resistant coatings. And is also used in some 'non-plastic' packaging to provide the barrier. Not the best thing to be putting into the ground especially if the plant is a food plant... but I think PFAS might be banned in the UK?? Will have to check. Luckily none of that stuff is made in NZ, so we are able to block PFAS packaging at the border (work in progress).
|
|
|
Post by lisamnz on Mar 12, 2024 15:43:34 GMT -5
McDonalds claims their drink cups can be recycled if rinsed out but am not sure how true it is. Obviously when picking them up from the street they go into general waste as well. the only stuff I put into recycling when I go litter picking are empty drink cans ( mostly beer cans, no surprise there) and empty plastic bottles (water / soft drinks) when they are clean aka not already driven over by a car / smashed into the dirt. I should really take a picture of the round about close to a service station with restaurants, it's so littered right now you can barely see the grass. But I stay away from that as you are not allowed to pick litter on A roads, supposedly the council does - not that I see much evidence of that. It annoys me every time I drive to work, as I still can't wrap my head around people just throwing rubbish out of their car windows, or dropping it on the floor, sometimes when there is a bin close by. There is no reason why McD's coffee cups would be any more recyclable than the others. Unless they are talking about an in-store recycling system? That's possible. McD's is making shifts to reusable packaging for all kinds of things - which is kinda cool. I can see how long it takes people to eat their takeaways from town by spotting where the littering starts on the road home. I really don't know what is wrong with people. Most of the cans that are littered here are RTDs, mostly rum & coke! INteresting that you mostly find beer, Rom. There was an organisation in the UK that used to do regular litter surveys, EnCams, I'm not sure if they still exist - it was for the 'keep britain tidy' campaign, part of DEFRA. WE also have litter surveys done here but they are carried out in a slightly random manner and so the data isn't as useful as it could be. The furthest I'll go with non-cafe coffee is one of our national service station chains. In an emergency, it's actually ok. Definitely not McDs!
|
|
|
Post by fishface on Mar 12, 2024 16:32:25 GMT -5
Bp were doing single origin coffee for a while. Whatever the reason I preferred it to their regular blend. Apparently it wasn't popular so they removed it from sale but I suspect it wasn't financially viable more than anything. I know a few staff who said they sold loads of it.
|
|
|
Post by lisamnz on Mar 12, 2024 16:40:59 GMT -5
I think it was a BP I went in to on the weekend. yeah it was, cos I was charging the car at the same time.
|
|