Starbucks Tests Reusable Cup
Stores at a London airport will charge for disposable cups but not for reusable cups.
Jun 12, 2019
LONDON – Starbucks has begun a pilot program on reusable cups at its Gatwick Airport locations in London, Bloomberg News reports. The first-of-its-kind trial will see if it can move airport travelers to reusable, rather than disposable, cups.
Gatwick already recycles most of the 7 million disposable coffee cups travelers consume annually from the airport. Starbucks funded the pilot program through an initiative the company debuted in 2018 that tacked on a 6-cent fee for disposable cups at its U.K. stores. Starbucks donated the fee to Hubbub, an environmental nonprofit that is using the money to fund the Gatwick pilot.
The Gatwick Starbucks will add 6 cents for disposable cups, but reusable cups will be free. Starbuck calculated that if 250 customers opted for the reusable cup, more than 7,000 cups could be “saved” during the 30-day trial. The company is tracking returned reusable cups, which can be put in various collection points throughout the airport.
“What will be really interesting is to see where the cups end up,” said Jaz Rabadia, senior manager of energy and sustainability at Starbucks in the U.K.
“Transport hubs such as airports and railway stations are areas with a lot of footfall and not a very high use of reusable cups,” said Trewin Restorick, CEO and co-founder of Hubbub. He said that airports provide a good test facility to see if customers will switch to reusable or pay extra for disposable cups.
Sustainability
