The problem with disposable coffee

[00:00.39] Millions of us grab a coffee on our way to work. And when we do, it probably comes served in a branded, disposable, cardboard coffee cup.

[00:12.88] Once the coffee is done, just pop the cup into a recycling bin and forget about it.

[00:19.52] The cup will be taken away and turned into a new one for you to use again tomorrow. The system works, right?

[00:28.55] There’s a hitch. In the UK, we throw away an estimated 2.5 billion disposable coffee cups every year.

[00:38.64] And despite being recyclable in theory, in practice only very few of them are dealt with in a way that makes them sustainable.

[00:49.00] This makes them a bit of an obstacle.

[00:51.66] What throws a spanner in the works is the layer of polyethylene that makes the cup waterproof, and the lid, which is most often made of polystyrene.

[01:02.55] As a result, most of the cups end up in landfill.

[01:07.59] But there are efforts underway to tackle this issue.

[01:11.58] One company, Biome Bioplastics, has come up with a fully compostable, recyclable cup that uses natural materials, such as potato starch, as waterproofing.

[01:25.13] Mr Mines, its chief executive, believes that this is the first time bioplastic has been used for disposable cups and lids that have to cope with hot liquid.

[01:37.88] And they're still fully recyclable.

[01:41.86] Another feasible solution has been proposed by Frugalpac, who have patented a cup with a lightly-attached plastic lining.

[01:51.16] This can be easily separated during the recycling and ‘offers a more pragmatic solution' than changing our current recycling habits, says Frugalpac’s founder Martin Myerscough.

[02:06.83] Safia Qureshi says India has provided the inspiration for her solution.

[02:12.67] She puts forward that we use returnable and reusable cups, which are tracked and collected by her company Cup Club.

[02:21.44] They will be responsible for collecting, washing and redistributing the clean cups to participating retailers.

[02:29.67] One final example of lateral thinking comes from Cupffee.

[02:34.45] This trio from Bulgaria have combined cereals to form a cup which can be eaten once the drink is finished.

[02:43.75] It is apparently sweet and crisp, can hold a coffee for up to 40 minutes and will biodegrade within weeks.

[02:53.04] Whether any of these innovative ideas are a perfect fit for this disposable issue, only time will tell.

[03:00.48] It’s possible that a more viable solution has yet to be ventured, though it may not be long in coming.

[03:06.86] All it may require is a little more thinking outside the box… or should that be coffee cup?