After you have finished drinking your coffee it stands to reason that the next thing you do with it is toss it in the garbage. No matter how many times days these cups get tossed away, people do it without giving it any more thought. There are some consumers who repeat the process every day and others at least several times a week.
Nonetheless, these disposable coffee cups with lids are a barista’s most important order—and the consumer’s most convenient way to carry his cup of coffee.
With that being said, there is not a coffee shop in the world that doesn’t make use of ordering disposable coffee cups with lids. If they did not, it wouldn’t be long before they would be out of business.
Coffee cups are designed with several different layers, this is especially important because consumers need to be able to protect their hands from the hot liquid while they are holding the cup and keeping the cup from becoming soggy. And the convenience of the lid allows them to drink their coffee while at the same time be able to minimize spilling the drink in their car or to wherever they may be heading.
However, there is a downside to the morning’s most loveable cup. And that is, for the most part, it will not be part of a recycling process. This is true if you are receiving the cup that feels as though it has a slightly waxy coating on it. The reason is that many of the disposable cups are coated with plastic and this is what prohibits them from being recycled. It has been said that it will take the infamous coffee cup about 20 years in the landfill before it finally decomposes.
This is one of the very reasons many of the coffee shops and fast food chains are prompting customers to buy the store’s hard plastic reusable cups that have their brand or their logo on it. So the next time the consumers want to get a cup of coffee he or she will be able to bring their “keep cup” into the store and fill it up.
It is a known fact that Americans alone will consume over 400 million cups of coffee a day. And with that being said, if you are one of the consumers that purchase a cup of hot tea or hot coffee every day, statistics indicate that you will end up creating approximately 23 pounds of waste per year.
No matter whether all the cups are recyclable or not, we all have a love affair with the disposable coffee cup and the lid. When we order hot drinks to go, getting the coffee cup and lid is just expected and nothing else will do.
So even though we are faced with the dilemma of how we can keep the environment safe and green —it will probably be a long time coming before the worlds favorite morning drink will come in a cup that will be recyclable and environmentally friendly 100% of the time.
In the meantime and in between time, merchants will continue to supply their customers with either the plain disposable coffee cup with a lid or maybe it will be a fancy disposable cup with a unique design, no matter what it looks like—it will most likely be of no use after you have tossed it away.
Nevertheless, it may be interesting to ponder the fact that the lifespan of your cup may outlive you once it arrives in the landfill.
However, if you are ever in need of its convenience, they will always be at your disposal.
