Starbucks’ Toronto recycling pilot program a success
Starbucks has finally proven that its paper cups are recyclable. Turns out that most paper drinking receptacles from Starbucks end up in the garbage—recyclers usually don’t accept them. The coffee behemoth wanted to demonstrate that recycling its paper cups is feasible, so it looked to the GTA, of all places, where it collected 6,000 pounds of used paper cups and sent them to a pulp mill in Mississippi as part of a six-week pilot project. We always knew Torontonian latte sippers were good for something.
Apparently, the project was a success. Old paper cups were turned into new ones without any special kind of wizardry, although the Mississippi paper mill that successfully recycled them is the only mill in the U.S. that produces recycled paper fibre that’s sufficiently high quality to be used for eating and drinking purposes. The whole thing was part of Starbucks’ latest commitment to ensure that 100 per cent of its cups are reusable or recyclable by 2015. Still, it seems to us this whole thing should have been looked into a while ago. Like 1991, maybe.
• Where Does That Starbucks Cup Go? [New York Times]
• Starbucks and International Paper Demonstrate Viability of Recycling Used Cups into New Cups [Businesswire]
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Starbucks has finally proven that its paper cups are recyclable. Turns out that most paper drinking receptacles from Starbucks end up in the garbage—recyclers usually don’t accept them. The coffee behemoth wanted to demonstrate that recycling its paper cups is feasible, so it looked to the GTA, of all places, where it collected 6,000 pounds of used paper cups and sent them to a pulp mill in Mississippi as part of a six-week pilot project. We always knew Torontonian latte sippers were good for something.
Apparently, the project was a success. Old paper cups were turned into new ones without any special kind of wizardry, although the Mississippi paper mill that successfully recycled them is the only mill in the U.S. that produces recycled paper fibre that’s sufficiently high quality to be used for eating and drinking purposes. The whole thing was part of Starbucks’ latest commitment to ensure that 100 per cent of its cups are reusable or recyclable by 2015. Still, it seems to us this whole thing should have been looked into a while ago. Like 1991, maybe.
• Where Does That Starbucks Cup Go? [New York Times]
• Starbucks and International Paper Demonstrate Viability of Recycling Used Cups into New Cups [Businesswire]){kind=link}
What does this really mean? Are customers throwing these cups in recycling bins in Toronto or Mississauga? Toronto does not recycle the coffee cups, so not a big win is it?
Why doesn’t the city of Toronto recycle the cups instead of companies driving the small number of cups actually collected in the store to Mississuaga where they have a recycling plant that recycles coffee cups? Most coffee cups are recyclable…it all depends if the cities have the facilities to recycle them…..Toronto does not. Having to “transport” the cups further away…causes other issues.
Many things are recyclable….we just don’t have the facilities to actually recycle them. People thing everything they put in the blue bin gets recycled. Wrong.
Fantastic news and hope this can be rolled out across the USA, for those that are further afield, it is possible to recycle paper cups in Europe for more information see http://www.thepapercupcompany.co.uk/content_environmental_information.php
From my understanding there’s a misconception that it’s not recycable they proved they can and are hoping more facilities look into getting the equippment to recycle them. I hope they do.
This is a misleading article-you should be ashamed of yourselves Toronto Life! Starbucks cups are NOT recyclable in Toronto. The 6-week pilot program ended after 6 weeks and 4 billion cups out of 10billion garbaged in North America every year still have the Starbucks logo on them. This article is closer to an advertorial than journalism.