Are you a coffee drinker?
Did you know that takeaway beverage cups are not recyclable? Compostable coffee cups also need to go to a commercial composting facility to be broken down. So sadly, an estimated 295 million beverage cups go to landfill in New Zealand every year after a single use (Packaging Forum).
The best choice is to bring your own clean coffee cup whenever you order a takeaway coffee, or borrow a reusable cup instore. It’s a practical day-to-day way we can all help cut the millions of beverage cups used in New Zealand each year, and enjoy great coffee without the waste.
We’ve launched a campaign called Bring It! with more than 50 local cafes to help coffee drinkers develop this second good habit with their coffee: using a reusable coffee cup.
Discounted coffee with your own cup
Now at 45 cafes, restaurants and service stations around New Plymouth you can get a discount of between 20 cents and $1 on coffee when you bring your own clean reusable cup. So it pays to get in the Bring It habit and start saving on your coffee bill!
Find participating businesses at Waste minimisation out and about (npdc.govt.nz) and pack your favourite cup in your handbag, glovebox or work drawer to start saving.
Oh no, I want to BYO, but forgot my cup!
Sometimes despite good intentions, repacking and remembering to bring your own cup doesn’t happen, or you need a spontaneous coffee when you’re on the go. Luckily, local cafes are making it easy to still be able to drink takeaway coffee without the waste with the recent introduction of the Again Again cup share system in the New Plymouth District.
Seven leading cafes are the first to offer Again Again cups, which can be borrowed for a fully refundable $3 deposit. Participating businesses are listed here on the NPDC website.
Here’s how Again Again works:
- Head to one of the participating cafes to borrow an Again Again cup.
- Pay a one-off bond of $3 for a stainless steel cup and lid, or $2.50 for just a cup.
- Take the cup away and enjoy a waste-free coffee on the go.
- Next time you’re after a coffee, bring back the cup to any cafe using Again Again and swap it for a free fresh cup, and just pay for the coffee. (No need to wash the cup, just make sure it’s empty of liquid and not mouldy.) You can take off the paper heat sleeve and reuse it on your new clean cup. Or recycle or compost the sleeve when you get home or back to work.
- Just like they do with crockery when you drink in, the cafe will then clean the cups and lids in their commercial dishwasher.
- If you don’t bring back your Again Again cup that time, just pay another $3 to borrow another cup. You can take back a stack of up to 12 cups to any Again Again cafe at any point, and get a full refund of $3 per cup.
Convenient, guilt free, and cost neutral. Give it a try, and get into the easy Again Again habit!
Where do I find out more?
‘Bring It!’ posters are now up in windows and counters of participating cafes.
In April you will also see coverage of the campaign on social media, at events, and in local magazines. You can also see the first of three videos promoting why local coffee drinkers ‘Bring It’ here.
Also listen to MoreFM radio station in April and early May for opportunities to win a reusable coffee cup or coffee voucher.
If you’re in a coffee drinking workplace in the New Plymouth district, get in touch with us on commercialwaste@npdc.govt.nz about our reusable coffee cup photo competition for workplaces.
Plastic Free July 2021 in Taranaki will further support the Bring It campaign, with events and further promotions. In the second half of 2021 Sustainable Taranaki will also continue the Bring It campaign with an expanded focus on reusable food containers, funded by the NPDC Waste Levy Fund.
Learn more and stay in touch with the campaign on the NPDC website at Waste minimisation out and about (npdc.govt.nz)
