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My Starbucks Doesn’t Recycle. Does Yours? |
25 Comments |
| By Michael d'Estries in Business, Green Living, Recycling | June 4, 2007 | ||
Yes, I enjoy Starbucks Coffee. Let’s just get that out of the way. I actually prefer a local joint called Gimmie! Coffee over them, but Gimmie! is a little out of the way for convenience sake so the ‘bucks works for me from time to time.
It doesn’t mean, of course, that I lower my green standards. I scrutinize just as much as any other joint here in Ithaca. Starbucks has been stepping up their efforts to become “more green” with various efforts over the past year. Recycled paper sleeves, pastry bags, green initiatives with Global Green USA, etc. So, they’ve got that going for them.
However, I noticed something strange today for the first time. My Starbucks does not recycle. When asked were the bin was located, the woman behind the counter said that just have regular garbage cans. Great.
This is ridiculous for several reasons. One, I live in what’s been labeled as the 2nd “Greenest City In America”, Ithaca, NY. We’re pretty proud of our sustainability efforts — including recycling. You’d think the marketing folks over at HQ would have said, “Hey, we should add some recycle bins to the Ithaca market to show we’re in line with community values.” But perhaps I’m being a little too logical there.
Second, have you ever read the sleeve on their cups?
“Starbucks is committed to reducing our environmental impact through increased use of post-consumer recycled materials. Help us help the planet.”
WTF? Um, I’d love to help — but now I’m just going to throw my coffee cup and sleeve into the garbage bin because you’re not giving me much of a choice. I carried my paper away from the store until I could find a proper place to recycle it, but 99% of the rest of the population probably would not do the same.
C’mon, Starbucks! If you’re serious about closing the loop and helping the planet, give your consumers the means to properly dispose of their paper products. Anything less is just words on paper.
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Tara said,
Ok, I won’t say I’ve never given in to the convenience of Starbucks, just because they happened to have a kiosk in a grocery store.
But… if you’re really worried about the impact of your own cup being thrown away, why not bring a non-disposable mug? Even recycling the paper cup isn’t a great option, it’s still pretty energy intensive. Or if you’re caught out by surprise without your own mug, carry your paper cup home with you to recycle.
Yes, it would be nice if the option was there for folks who aren’t likely to carry their own mug. But, in my experience, people abuse the recycling bin idea in restaurants. They dump in half full cups. They put trash in the recycling bin on purpose just to be jerks. The result is a lot more work on the part of the store to sort the recycling – work that’s both time consuming and nasty. Honestly, my belief is that they turn around and throw the recycling in the regular trash when no one is looking to avoid having to do that task. Even if they do properly recycle that stuff… perhaps those Starbucks resources would be better, environmentally, spent on developing more environmentally friendly cups, on installing solar panels on their stores, etc?
Christopher said,
The lack of recycling options is an issue and I agree should be provided for glass, plastic and other recycleable materials. Unfortunately there does not exist any hot beverage cups that are recycleable except styrofoam.(Full stop) There are compostable hot beverage cups derived from Genetically modified corn but if they enter the recycling stream they actually contaminate it, and if they get tossed into the garbage they will not “compost” they will sit there just like any cup. SO whether PLA or PET once it is laminated to paper for a hot cup you can no longer recycle it.
michael said,
Yes, the hot beverage cup is a problem for recycling. I have to imagine, however, that there’s someone out there working on a hot cup that can either be compostable or recycled. How many cups of coffee and purchased at various shops around the country every day? There’s your market. Amazing waste.
The “Bring Your Own Mug” concept is great but does not fall within the radar of a majority of people. We love to carry PDAs, cell phones, and laptops — but most people do not actively carry a mug for coffee. Perhaps if there was more incentive?
I don’t think the “mixed-garbage” issue should deter companies like Starbucks from pursuing some form of recycling program. At the place I work, they’ve solved a good deal of the issue by creating a thin 1” slot that only most paper products will slide through. No cups, no food. Since Starbucks obviously focuses on cups, this would not present an issue. They also, however, give you your food in a small pastry bag that could be recycled — along with the cup sleeve, napkins, etc. I think this “thin slot” solution might solve the hassles faced elsewhere. It would at least be worth a shot…
Sean said,
You can’t recycle used coffee cups, they are too processed. And also the residue from the coffee will cause the paper to grow mold and stink.
Natallica said,
without even taking the logistics of getting customers to recycle into account, starbucks should at LEAST make it easy for barista’s to recycle (milk containers, cardboard, etc).
matt said,
Another easy way to help would be if Starbucks or others would offer a discount if you bring in your own mug…bigger discount if you buy their ~$30 mug. The cup has to be like half of the actual cost of your cup of coffee.
I usually just take home the cardboard sleeve (after throwing away the cup) and throw it in my recycle bin. I mean it’s clean and it fits in your pocket…pretty easy.
GreenChick said,
Starbuck does give you a $0.10 incentive for bringing your won cup. Hey, every little bit counts.
http://thisgreenlife.wordpress.com
sillyLN said,
1) it may be a function of geographic location. The starbucks in upstate NY all have recycling receptors for glass bottles, probably because of the $0.05 deposite\ on these containers.
2) I don’t know about recycling the paper cups, but the plastic frappuccino cups (and lids) are #2, so I always hang on to them until I can recycle them.
Lisa A said,
What about the tremendous amount of plastics- the milk cartons and cups are #1 & 2? What about the newspapers? Just look in the trashcan and you’ll find them all. I have inquired at my local Starbucks but nobody seems particularly concerned and/or interested. Of course, I am in Houston, so it’s not too surprising that there is little interest in recycling anything!
fred said,
The 1991 Hocking report, et al, showed that sytrofoam cups have a considerably lower lifecycle environmental impact over paper cups. The process of manufacturing paper is very energy and chemical intensive. In addition, the paper cup is wetted cardboard, which cannot be recycled. Finally, the paper, while in a landfill, breaksdown (after 30 some years) to creates methan gas, which is 30 x more damaging to the ozone than CO2. –Starbucks, while a good and responsible company, missed the boat on this one.
Like someone said previously, use your own cup!
Jason said,
There are many biodegradable, recycled, and reusable products on the market, but are not being fully utilized. I am sure it has a lot to do with costs and if you think Starbucks, or for that matter any coffee shop owner, is willing to give up its margin to be ecofriendly, I say guess again.
Starbucks attempted back in 1996 to begin a partnership program to look at reinventing the coffee cup and placed it in some of their stores in 2006 as a market experiment, but they were not convinced with the end results and pulled the concept from the shelves. I am not sure if they are still experimenting with the product but it was a disposable coffee cup with a built-in sleeve. This new cup showed signs of less impact on the environment, but nothing ever came of it.
Somehow, someway there has to be more incentive to have people embrace the concept of reusing and this will have to come from the store owners. Recycling is great, but just not ever-present in the majority of the population.
Conductus said,
Some people have said that the stuff at Starbuck’s (or other places too, not just there) can’t be recycled, because it’s too processed. They didn’t give reasons why not, but they’re not trying to teach us why not, just trying to tell us the brutal facts. And I’ve heard other brutal facts too, and sometimes they just weren’t so. I didn’t research whether the stuff can be recycled or not. I’m going to assume, though, that with a little creativity, EVERYTHING can be recycled. At home, I build stuff (spaceships, usually) out of little plastic bits of junk. That’s a form of recycling, right? I imagine that the unusable paper in paper cups could be used for, say, compressed-paper fire logs? That would be recycling. Use your imagination. For every can’t, there’s about 3.7 to 19.8324 cans, studies show. I’m using my imagination right now and I can’t think of anything besides the fire logs and maybe cheap napkins, but your imagination can probably dream up a whole new business. Even for the lids. So, let’s just assume a priori that everything can be recycled, and slowly some wild entreprenuers will think of solutions. You know, someone told the Wright Brothers that their airplanes wouldn’t fly, I’m sure. I can imagine their dad saying, “Orville, Wilbur, you guys ain’t gonna amount to jack working on those airy-fairy airplanes. Woo wooo, hocus pocus, tweet tweet tweet. Bicycles is where it’s at.” [And he was right about the bicycles, but totally WRONG about airplanes, according to my fiction here.] Some cynics say, “Bah, you can’t recycle them there lids. Can’t be done. Now toss them like everyone else.” “Yes! Everyone else!” the old ant replies. But Flick or Fleck the ant just keeps on inventing anyway. [You saw that ant movie by Steve Jobs--or someone, right?] You know what, I’m looking at a car out the window right now that runs on vegetable oil. It’s license plate says so. In a prior time, just a few years before they were publicly brought to our attention, that would have seemed preposterous to the majority of the people (though many have known all along that it was do-able). So republicans and democrats, join your dirty-ceramic-cup-holding hands and sing praises to the god Recyclopedius and then give yourselves one giant group hug. (Yes, the thought makes me cringe too. That’s why I’m sharing it with you.)
Oh, you can get some ceramic cups at my CafePress store if you just want to avoid that whole recycle thing: http://www.cafepress.com/conductusproduc
Eddie said,
unfortunately, recycling is more the responsibility of the consumer. but, we have a choice in what we can do with our trash. local waste management companies should provide more incentive (stiffer requirements) for businesses to recycle. until then, recycling is just another expense that nobody wants to pay for. it would be nice to have the option to recycle at each Starbucks location, but for now, i just take my Starbucks cups with me and recycle at home.
caroline said,
I am in the fortunate position of not drinking coffee, so I have never even set foot in a Starbucks – they just do not exist in my world – so I can say ‘just don’t go into places like that’ but I know that that is no good for most people.
In Europe we are now having to meet EU standards for waste disposal – and big businesses are having to do their bit too. Not enough, I’ll wager, but it is a start, unless they spend a lot of time and energy working out ways to weasel out of it! Which of course some will.
To follow Eddie’scomment about waste management companies providing incentives to the companies – ones that save them mopney will always attract their interest – tell them how they can save money and they will soon sit up.
Although I have problems with the EU I can see that have a centralised body compelling these companies to do things is sometimes the only way – I am worried about how bad is it going to have to get before the multi nationals admit that there is a problem.
Alex said,
US is way behind in recycling compare to the rest of the developed world. I am from Taiwan and recycling is required by law for all residents and businesses, and yes, that includes Starbucks and McDonald there. People there have been taught to separate garbage and recyclable materials. Shopping plastic bags are not given out free so people are encourage to bring their own shopping bags. It’s a habit to them now. In Korea I think business are required to use minimum packaging.
Here in New York however, there are two classes of people living here. There are those that are very conscious of the environment and there are those that just do as they like. It’d be extremely difficult to educate the many homeless people to not place their garbage in the recycle bin.
That being said, if the government is determined the public can be educated to recycle over time. However, I think at this time it is at the bottom of their to do list.
Starbucks Refuses Reusable Mug, Claims Health Code Violations » GroovyGreen.com - Start Today :: Save Tomorrow said,
[...] over the past couple years. Hate, because they sometimes baffle my mind on other initiatives (like, a lack of recycling), and how they basically erode the customer base of local coffee shops. Anyways, I’m less [...]
Canarus said,
2008
MBA Case about Starbucs Internet Initiatives
http://www.slideshare.net/canarus/starbucks-case/
Jenny said,
I work at a Starbucks in Maryland, and we don’t recycle anything at all. There’s even a waste bin behind the counter labeled for plastic only for recycling–it’s supposed to be used for empty milk jugs–and it’s routinely used for everything and thrown in with the rest of the trash; I’m not even sure there is anywhere to recycle it. Empty glass containers get trashed with everything else. We generate many huge trash cans’ worth of trash a day, and no one makes the slightest effort to recycle it.
If you want Starbucks to change these policies, visit them online and tell them that you won’t be patronizing their stores until they change things, and that you’ll be encouraging others to do the same.
Kathy Catterlin said,
I am so amazed also that Starbucks do not recycle. I have asked two different ones in town and the workers said that they don’t want to spend the money for recycling. How sad is that, the most money making coffee place in the world making millions. Yet they are to cheap to pay for something that is going to help are environment tremendously.
I live in Sacramento, Ca and would love to push this issue with the higher ups.
Josep said,
Please sign our petition to get Starbucks to recycle and send this to all of your friends to sign.
Unadillawood said,
I had contacted them as I make a renewable Firelog The spent coffee grounds would be a welcome addition to this product.
I hope that they work with me as they wood do well to have some Green Exposure after all the Beans were once Green.
Come on Starbucks come sit by the Fire and chat a while…
Bests, unadillawood@earthlink.net
Anna said,
I work at a Starbucks in Saint Paul MN which is a pretty progressive place generally speaking. Our recycling service is a non-profit company that also is working on city-wide industrial composting as well (which would be able to compost something like a paper coffee cup which would be pretty sweet). Anyways, we wanted to recycle, but had issues from the landlord that prevented us from recycling for a long time. Our manager had to bug him for about a year before we were able to come up with a way to dispose of our recycling. We now have a separate bin for the milk jugs, syrup bottles that we go through every day (I’m guessing 30 jugs daily), which is a huge improvement! So you could try working with Starbucks at a corporate level to require recycling, but it mostly comes down to the local level and the drive of the manager to enforce such policies (and the building requirements, recycling opportunities, etc.) P.S. Every location offers in house ceramic mugs for those who plan on staying in the restaurant.
smurf said,
I work in a Starbuck in the UK an have done for two an half years and all the recycling ive seen is cardboard. We recently got are neew stock for the summer lauch which includes cold bottle drinks in clear glass bottles, i asked my manager ‘are we getting a glass recycling bin for the glass bottles’ the reply shocked and disgusted me and the other partners within my store, we got told that the ’scoop’ ( a starbucks new letter giving partners information about all things starbucks) says we DONT recycle the glass bottles, we just throw them away in normal non recycling bins.
Brittany Harris said,
I am starting a local petition in my area to get Starbucks to recycle. They’re a major benchmark for all fast food companies. If they don’t start, how can we expect smaller companies to start. With enough pressure, someone will get innovative in their marketing and research and developement team and think of something. No excuses! This hot cup thing is absolutely ridiculous. So what, if that is not an option, there is certainly another option out there.. I suggest we start local petitions in order to make a point and then proceed further untill we see our major corportaions complying with the enviroment’s needs!
jobranson said,
What about the plastic gift cards? Are they reused, recycled, or even recyclable? And yes, my 7 yo daughter asked the staff where to recycle her glass bottle and we were surprised to have the staff politely take it to the trash for her. And water in plastic bottles?
I love Starbucks for lots of reasons, but they are way, way behind the curve.