PREDICTED TO be as big as 'I'm not a plastic bag', 'I'm Not a Paper Cup' is set to revolutionize the way Brits drink their mid morning takeaway coffees or teas, says Nigel's Eco Store.
An astounding 18.25 million takeaway paper cups are handed out by Starbucks alone every year - but due to their wax coating, they cannot be recycled and so end up on UK landfills.
"We get through an astonishing 31 billion cups of coffee a year (not to mention the cups of tea drank in the UK) and a high proportion of this figure includes takeaway coffee in paper or polystyrene cups that just make it to the dump - a problem, not dissimilar to the dilemma of plastic bags," says Nigel of Nigel's Eco Store.
"Just as British shoppers got to grips with bringing their own bags, the same should apply for takeaway coffees and I'm Not a Paper Cup, already an icon in the US, is perfect to tackle the problem of non-recyclable paper cups.
I'm Not a Paper Cup is a reusable, double walled, thermal ceramic mug that comes with a re-sealable silicon lid keeps the coffee safe - not only does the coffee stay warmer for longer, it will also cost less with many high street chains now offering coffee at knockdown prices if customers bring their own.
"I'm not a paper cup is great! How could anyone bear to drink their morning coffee in ghastly unsustainable polystyrene after the delights of this glorious, green mug. Everyone should have one," says Catherine Jones, eco columnist from Psychologies who recently road tested 'I'm Not a Paper Cup' and hasn't been seen without it since.
Source: Ethical Junction
Green (Living) Review comment: Many people, unfortunately, do tend to believe that those cardboard cups from Starbucks, Wild Bean, and others are, because they are of cardboard, recyclable, which, as mentioned, they are not, due to their coating. This coating, however, is no longer wax in most cases but a thin lining of plastic, the latter of which, more than likely, also harbors BPA. In fact the ordinary wax coated cardboard would be much easier to recycle than the new laminate ones.
Having said that, the “I'm not a paper cup” while being all fine and good is something that will only work of people actually carry one and if outlets are prepared to fill those. I know of people who have gone to such coffee places like Starbucks with their own travel mug (from a different source than the stores) and the company was not prepared to fill up their travel mugs. They put it into a cardboard cup first and then they were prepared to let the customer put it into his own cup.
Nothing like this will ever work until such a time that the outlets are prepared to use, say, an earthenware mug or such – if they have to have their own measures in which to purvey the merchandise – and then decant it into the customer's own vessel or simply are prepared to fill the vessel brought in by the customer. It can hardly be rocket science to get machines, for instance, to dispense a certain amount of coffee or such, regardless of size of vessel proffered.
I have yet to lay my sticky little hands on a review sample of the “I'm not a paper cup” drinking vessel and, then, maybe, I may be convinced about the credentials of this particular cup over others that I can bring along to the store, as long as they are willing to fill it for me without first pouring the coffee into a paper cup and then allowing me to fill my cup that I brought along.
M Smith (Veshengro), June 2008
"I'm not a paper cup" set to shake up throwaway cup habit
