“Kill the K-Cup”
The new trend among home-made coffee is single-cup coffee machines, whether that be in the homes of kitchens or offices. It’s easy, customizable and perfect for making that one cup of coffee. But what people don’t realize is how much waste it creates. One major company which uses this system is Keurig’s k-cups. These k-cups are made of plastic integrated with a coffee filter, coffee grounds, and plastic foil top so there is no simple way to separate the components for recycling. Sure, boiling water every time to make a pot of coffee uses energy too, but when you look at the life cycle analysis of the k-cup, the environmental impacts are huge.
Let’s look at the life cycle of the k-cup:
- The plastic cup is produced in a factory from oil which uses a lot of energy.
- The k-cup is then lined with a coffee filter, filled with coffee, and then sealed with a plastic foil top.
- The k-cups are then placed in a box board container. These box board containers are packed into a corrugated cardboard box for shipping.
- The k-cups are then transported around the world to coffee distributors.
- The distributors transport the coffee to stores and offices.
- The k-cups are finally used by the consumer where they make the single cup of coffee and then it is thrown in the trash.
The major issue with the k-cups is the disposal. So why hasn’t Keurig come up with recyclable k-cups? Well they aim to have 100% recyclable cups by 2020, but what now? Well competitors have come up with recyclable alternatives, but Keurig has created a system which only allows k-cups to be used within their machines. Keurig should create partnerships with other companies to create recyclable k-cups; all they need is a fairy god mother to lead the charge. Similar to how Tesla is sharing their trade secrets with the industry, Keurig has the opportunity to make a huge impact on the environment if they let other companies help.
Hi Kristen!
I also heard about the controversy about Keurig’s K-cup and wrote a blog post myself earlier in the term. From what I remember reading from The Atlantic’s article, John Sylvan, the creator of the Keurig K-Cup, actually came up with biodegradable cups but was turned away from Keurig. I did a project with Doi Chaang Coffee and they have actually produced a K-Cup that is 90% biodegradable because they removed the plastic cup that is seen on a lot of the K-Cups on the market. So, personally I don’t believe it’s the problem of costs that made Keurig turn away from Sylvan’s recommendations since they are essentially removing a step in their production. What do you think?
Thanks,
Katie
Hi Kristen,
Interesting article! I came across the same news. What struck me the most was that I am a K-Cup user and it did not occur to me how much waste it produces until I saw this campaign! So whoever made this video, definitely got people changing their thinking around K-Cups. What I wonder, is that K-Cup, the original company that owns it, Green Mountain Coffee Co. (now Keurig Canada), is based of an environmentally conscious company. To create a product like this goes against it! I also wonder if Keurig machines/ K-Cups sales did decrease as a result of this video.
Sammie
Hi Kristen,
Interesting video to watch! I really like the slogan of: KILL THE K-CUP, BEFORE IT KILLS OUR PLANET. In terms of Keurig’s K-cups aim to achieve 100 percent recyclable cups by 2020, how are they doing so? In one of my other classes, I heard about one company in Vancouver almost ready to launch a 100 percent sustainable cup in very soon time, and maybe K-cups could partnership with them to make it more sustainable. Although home-made coffee do creates lots of waste, it’s great to hear that K-cups are looking ways to make less waste and aims to achieve 100 percent recyclable cups. It’s a good try, and I will look forward to see how K-cups further approaches its goal.
Thank you for a great post!
Sujin