Leading the way to shape the future of our environment

The city has become the first in the world to ban single-use coffee pods and other disposable products from all government run buildings to help control environmental waste.

It is the capsules used in single use coffee pods that are particularly hard to recycle as they are made from a mixture of plastic and aluminum. It is 6 grams of coffee in 3 grams of

packaging. There is a statement being circulated, that if you line up the pods produced from the market leader there would be enough to circle the globe12 times.

Where it all started

Ever since 2013, Nestle who own Nespresso have had a patent revoked related to their low cost pixie brewer range.  Since this time, even though their machines have had 1,500 patents in existence, they haven’t been able to stem the flow of less expensive copycat capsules.

Last year, more than £112m worth of coffee pods were sold in the UK, up by a third on 2014 according to the ‘Grocer’. This trend is predicted to grow even further, trebling by 2020. At which point the coffee pod will overtake the traditional tea bag.

Consumer opinion

According to a survey undertaken by the ‘Grocer’, around 10 per cent of Britons polled believe the pods to be extremely bad for the environment. However, 22 percent of those asked said they owned a machine.

Will other cities follow suit?

This is an example of a city government taking the first step. If more cities across Europe follow this example it could lead to more pressure being placed on the industry? Or will customer convenience override the environmental effects?