Compostable single serve coffee pods have been around for a while, but Lavazza is the first of the big brands to release their own fully compostable coffee pods. Lets just hope that the other big manufacturers follow suit.
The details are a little patchy at the moment as to how exactly the pods are recycled, but Lavazza claim that their new single serve biopolymer-based coffee pods, or Eco Caps to give them their official name, are broken down in only 6 months.
When you consider that it takes normal coffee capsules like Tassimo pods between 250 and 500 years to break down in a landfill, this is a HUGE step forward.
Whats more, the Italian espresso giant are committed to updating their entire range of aluminium single serve coffee pods to their new environmentally friendly Eco Caps before the end of the year. Yes, you read that right, within the next 2 months!
You can buy Lavazza’s new Eco Caps today online and in your local supermarkets, and you are not going to be charged a premium for going green. The new line of coffee capsules cost £4.40 for a pack of 16, which is only 27p each.
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Coffee Pods Impact on the Environment
In the UK we now drink more than 95 million cups of coffee every day, according to the British Coffee Association. Yep, you read that right, 95 million cups every single day!
And as we have turned into a nation of coffee lovers, we also love convenience and that coffee shop taste. Which has made pod coffee machines increasingly popular in most households.
Worryingly, about 39,000 pods are manufactured every minute, according to Halo who make compostable coffee pods for Nespresso machines. Halo go on to claim that as the capsules are made up of various materials like aluminium foil and plastic, 29,000 of these end up in a landfill which then takes between 250-500 years to actually breakdown.
This has become such an issue that some city councils have banned them from within their municipal buildings as they try to be more green.
Lavazza Leading the Way
The new Eco Caps from Lavazza break down in only 6 months as part of normal food waste and can be put in your normal food waste bins, ready for collection by your local council.
But I don’t have a food waste bin that is collected by my local council, I hear you say!
Don’t worry, you can also drop off the used Eco Caps at your local TerraCycle drop off point, as they have teamed up with Lavazza to ensure you are covered and every capsule is composted.
Lavazza UK’s managing director, David Rogers said.
This major investment confirms our commitment to excellence and sustainable development.
Tassimo and Nespresso Recycling Schemes
Recycling coffee pods is not new for the major pod makers, as both Nespresso and Tassimo have schemes in place to allow consumers to recycle their coffee pods with relative ease.
Tassimo use TerraCycle in the UK, much like Lavazza, to cut down on their pods waste, and Nespresso have their Collect Plus stores which allows you to drop off bags of used capsules in more than 7,000 locations across the UK.
Lavazza Recycling Study
Unfortunately, even though there are several ways we can recycle, we are still not recycling our pods and capsules properly.
According to research released by Lavazzo on Monday, following a study of 2,000 adults in the UK, over a third of people admitted to simply throwing their used pods and capsules into the bin as they did not know that you could recycle them!
Here is some great news for you coffee lovers! ♻️☕️
You can now #compost your @LavazzaUK Eco Caps through the Lavazza Eco Caps Composting programme.
For more information, click here: https://t.co/x1HFVBBVni pic.twitter.com/fb7ykF7Aiq— TerraCycle UK (@TerraCycleUK) October 23, 2019
Wait, what, really? It is 2019 isn’t it!
Apparently 72% of consumers in the study did not fully understand what all the recycling symbols on packaging meant and generally felt quite confused as to what can and cannot be recycled.
The study showed that it was not just single serve coffee pods which caused confusion. Other things like takeaway pizza boxes, deodorant and body spray bottles and gift wrap also confusing more than half of the 2000 adults taking part in survey.