Eco-friendly coffee cups? Yes please!

Costa Coffee has announced the launch of a new trial of 100 percent fibre lids on its cups. Made from renewable plant-based material, the lids are recyclable and will be available at 150 Costa Coffee stores across the UK. The announcement comes a month after the coffee shop chain committed to halving carbon emissions per coffee serving by 2030 and reaching Net Zero by 2040.

During the trial, the company will note consumer and store team member feedback of the new lids. The lids will also be trialled in select Costa Express machines this summer, and, if successful, Costa Coffee states that it will make the new lids available permanently across all its stores and express stops in early 2023.

The new fibre lids have up to 50 percent lower carbon footprint than the current polystyrene plastic lids, according to the coffee company.

In addition to the new lids, Costa also changed the inside lining of its takeaway cups last year, which are now made of plant-based plastic, rather than an oil-based. The cups have a 26 percent lower carbon footprint than Costa Coffee’s previous takeaway cups when recycled. With these changes, consumers opting for a takeaway cup will now be able to enjoy their coffee in 100 percent plant-based packaging.

Commenting on the coffee company’s recent global carbon targets, its Global Brand & Sustainability Director, Deb Caldow said: “Targets require action and today’s announcement is another positive step in the right direction, helping improve single use options for coffee fans.

“We are working simultaneously on three key areas within our packaging – Reuse, Reduce, Recycle. Our aim is to encourage consumers to adapt reuse regularly, through offering reusable ‘rent a cup’ schemes and by rewarding consumers through an enhanced loyalty scheme, rewarding those opting to reuse. We’re confident that the trial will show us that consumers are ready for the switch from plastic to fibre and that as the UK’s favourite and biggest coffee shop chain, we can make a huge difference in reducing the volume and impact of single-use, oil-based plastic, on the environment.”

2. No matter the brand, we recycle all coffee cups returned to us, as well as used coffee pods ♻️ pic.twitter.com/7oENIKtnYM

— Costa Coffee (@CostaCoffee) April 22, 2022

Lastly, we’re proud to announce that we’re trialing fibre lids in 150 UK stores. We’ve been on a journey to create more circular packaging solutions for several years, so we’re excited to share this latest step. 🥳
Learn about the benefits of this change below! pic.twitter.com/QuIGjUkK84

— Costa Coffee (@CostaCoffee) April 22, 2022

Another planet-protecting step the company took recently was its trial of a reusable cup scheme, ‘BURT’ (Borrow, Use, Reuse, Takeback), which allows consumers to borrow a reusable cup to takeaway and return it on their next visit. It also relaunched a loyalty scheme last year with sustainability considerations at the forefront through the introduction of ‘Green Beans’. The initiative now rewards consumers with a free drink after only four purchases when using a reusable cup, compared to eight purchases in a takeaway cup.

“We hope other brands will join us in giving consumers easy ways to make more sustainable choices when enjoying their daily coffee,” Caldow added.