'Intention of latte levy lost at government level’

The purpose and intention of the ‘Latte Levy’ has been lost over the past 18 months since the EAC took up the issue, according to Smart Planet Technologies.

Will Lorenzi, president, Smart Planet Technologies, said the latte levy’s intention was to improve recycling of paper cups, not to switch the country to reusable cups, and eliminate use of paper cups.

“The War on Waste was about paper cups not being recycled and winding up in landfill, not to stop using paper cups. Of course the government, or anyone, would come to a conclusion that it’s not a good idea and wouldn’t work to make the country switch to reusable, en masse.  Paper cups are here for the foreseeable future and the goal was always to make them more sustainable, which the government will no longer try to help.”

Smart Planet’s reCUP is made with EarthCoating which contains up to 43% less plastic than traditional paper cups, and the California-based technology firm claims its coffee cup is recyclable using conventional paper recycling equipment.

“No one should have issue with disposable packaging if it’s made from sustainable materials i.e. paper, easily recyclable and profitable to recycle.

“Any government regulation should also incentivise and reward innovation that solves problems and makes improvements.  It’s fine to tax the problem but don’t tax the solution.  With reCUP, we’ve developed a paper cup that has less plastic and is universally recyclable.  Had paper cups been designed in this manner from the beginning, paper cups would have always been recyclable instead of being sorted for the landfill, and we never would have had a controversy over paper coffee cups, and there wouldn’t be a discussion of a latte levy. Retailers and consumers should be incentivised and able to opt out of the latte levy by using a paper cup that is already universally recyclable, rather than paying unnecessarily.”

The reCUP technology has been or is due to be rolled out at Taylor St Barista’s roaster coffee shops, Linstol (a US distributor for the airline cabin industry), Lenzing Papier, and Smart Planet said it was in talks with various brands in the USA.

To protect and serve food | Supplier Analysis – Foodservice

As seen in Packaging News UK Magazine - October 5, 2018 by Jez Abbott.

Brisk business due to the scorching weather and the World Cup bringing out the crowds hasn’t dampened growth in foodservice. This is despite tough high street trade and the debates around packaging waste, reports Jez Abbott.

How has business been for your company in the past year?
Kevin Curran, managing director, Tri-Star Packaging: Brisk. We are 5-6% up on last year in what can only be described as a tough market where standing still is seen by many as pretty good.
Mike Turner, managing director, Graphic Packaging International (GPI) Foodservice Europe: GPI has been performing strongly.
Simon Brears, foodservice sales director, Coveris: Sales have been buoyant. The prolonged spell of hot weather, royal wedding and World Cup have been very beneficial.
Joe Frankel, chief executive, Vegware: We grew by 35% from 2016-17 to 2017-18 and this year is shaping up to be a similar step.
Will Lorenzi, President, Smart Planet Technologies: Sales of reCUP have grown 30% month over month over the course of a year to reach 10 million cups a month.
Neil Goldman, managing director and chief executive, Colpac: Good. We achieved more growth despite ongoing debates on the environment, food waste, needs to reduce plastic and tough high-street trade.
Sally Molyneux, sales director, Klöckner Pentaplast food and consumer products: We are fortunate given today’s focus on plastic packaging – sustainable and recyclable packaging is integral to our portfolio.

What challenges are you facing?
Curran: It’s a perfect storm. Financially strapped food retailers and casual dining operators want reduced costs in a market where raw materials are going up, meanwhile home delivery is growing.
Turner: Our ability to efficiently meet demand as interest in sustainable packaging solutions rises.
Brears: With mounting pressure to use less single-use, but more sustainable packaging, it is imperative for us to progress with the next generation of materials in our formats.
Frankel: We’ve seen a huge surge in demand this year. Many product lines increased 10-fold in as many weeks. We’ve had step changes in categories we weren’t expecting which is a challenge.
Lorenzi: Market understanding of the differences and preferences between recyclable, compostable and biodegradable end-of-life solutions.
Goldman: Brexit and the complexities of the environmental debate around packaging. Both require strong teams to manage the seemingly constant changes.
Molyneux: The focus on closed-loop solutions and moving to a circular economy – we need to be sure we are aligned with this in terms of lightweighting and reducing carbon emissions.

What do you see as the biggest market opportunity for foodservice packaging?
Curran: There are two big opportunities. Street food is still a growing market; and the second is the soaring growth of home-delivered food to suits millennial dining styles.
Turner: Increased interest in sustainable packaging and the variety and quality of sustainable options available.
Brears: Compostable packaging is a small segment of the global packaging industry but we expect its usage to rise. We have re-launched ranges using a plastic-free, compostable film.
Frankel: In the US some operators have switched to reusables in-house though the huge rise in ‘grab and go’ and home delivery means that the overall market opportunity is growing.
Lorenzi: Sustainable packaging options. Products will be successful when they can make improvements on cost, performance and environmental footprint.
Goldman: As an industry we can educate our customers, their consumers and the media on the environmental benefits of packaging. This year we launched products under our compostable and recyclable Zest range.
Molyneux: Food to go, especially hot products with the advent of Deliveroo, Uber Eats and Just Eat. Packaging is integral to the in-home dining occasion.

What do you see as the key developments in packaging formats at present?
Curran: Tricky. Everyone wants to reduce packaging, which has led to a growing acknowledgement in the market that rPET is most probably the material of choice for our sector.
Turner: New coatings to enable packaging to be more easily recycled in standard waste streams.
Brears: Our NPD teams are working with customers to enhance food in environmentally responsible formats with an emphasis on different opening features and on shelf appeal.
Frankel: Let’s turn this question round and say where the development needs to be. Much of the industry hasn’t been designing products with recycling or composting in mind – all components of a product should go in the same recycling stream.
Lorenzi: Cost and performance used to be the key pillars of packaging technology, but the third pillar of environmental impact has become just as important – if not more so.
Goldman: Modified atmosphere packaging (MAP) technologies will play a pivotal role in protecting food responsibly.
Molyneux: Technology to design products that are widely recyclable using optimised amounts of material and keeping products as lightweight and fully functional as possible.

How has your client base changed over the years?
Curran: It’s client attitudes that have changed: they are dramatically more demanding and discerning on products, capabilities and new product development – and the price they expect to pay.
Turner: Our client base is widening in numbers of customers and the types of products we are asked to supply.
Brears: Our client base has been consistent, but we have seen some consolidation in the marketplace.
Frankel: We have gone from being a niche option to now being a key supplier to major players. We now work with big beverage brands.
Lorenzi: Client demand has changed. Now purchasing decisions are being driven by the need to make packaging more sustainable.
Goldman: As boundaries between retail and food service continue to blur more opportunities have presented themselves.
Molyneux: Clear differentiation of substrate versus market. Councils, retailers and the NHS prefer recycled PET. Traditional takeaways want EPS. We must honour the past but innovate for the future.

How do you feel media scrutiny on plastic packaging and utensils has affected the foodservice industry?
Curran: I’m seriously fed up with the political and media focus on plastic as a problem. It is not the problem; it’s how plastic is used, handled and disposed of, and sadly there’s lack of understanding.
Turner: Scrutiny benefits paperboard packaging as we can demonstrate work being done to improve recycling rates. There continues to be confusion on compostable foodservice packaging.
Brears: The media negativity ignores the role packaging plays in protecting food, keeping it fresh, communicating product information and supporting point of sale decisions.
Frankel: It’s been a much-needed wake-up call. At last people are starting to understand that real recycling doesn’t happen by chance.
Lorenzi: Media scrutiny is driving a need for alternative materials, so fibre-based packaging and other renewable materials will see a growth in demand.
Goldman: The media heightens awareness of the issues but it hasn’t the complexity of the solutions. The subtleties to recycling make it hard for the media to convey the scope of the situation.
Molyneux: A certain amount of scrutiny is healthy – based on fact rather than perception. The current narrative does not truly reflect the reality. But it is an opportunity to define long-term aspirations, such as our Positive Plastics Pledge to recycle plastic waste.

Has the media scrutiny on litter and coffee cups posed dilemmas for you?
Curran: Not really. Everybody uses different materials and works to a different premise, be it recyclability, compostability or whatever. If we all agreed on one material, it would ease collection and recycling.
Turner: We are trying to demonstrate to legislators that taxation will not result in increased recycling rates but will hit the high street and the value our manufacturing sector brings to UK Plc.
Brears: We expect the demand for more sustainable packaging to continue to rise and the use of more recyclable materials and those from renewable sources.
Frankel: Compostable packaging isn’t the solution to litter, either on land or at sea – the cup has been the poster boy for a wider issue. We welcome the debate but need a solution for the whole category, not just the cup. The only downside to the media focus has been some misinformation.
Lorenzi: To the contrary. Media scrutiny has helped our business, as we provide a coffee cup with less plastic and easier to recycle.
Goldman: It has helped drive consumer awareness of the environment and recycling which can hopefully provide a base for increased consumer engagement.
Molyneux: Littering is a major social and environmental problem but it’s not the same as plastic waste which is valuable and easily recycled. Products do not litter themselves – people litter.

Has all the uncertainty around Brexit had an impact on your business?
Curran: The uncertainty is worse than Brexit itself. Lack of decisiveness is causing problems. A ‘no deal’ could see us buying more from the Far East pushing up food miles and carbon footprints.
Turner: We are hopeful a deal on Brexit will be agreed and that this will help to clear up much of the uncertainty.
Brears: We have a lot of enquiries from the EU and since Brexit was announced, our exports to the EU have grown 9% year-on-year.
Frankel: Not as yet, but March is just around the corner. WTO rules would add a 9% tariff for many types of disposables. Any logistical or financial barrier between us and our European clients will be a major challenge. Within the EU, we can export with no fees or red tape. Add in currency fluctuations, and Brexit is the biggest business risk we are facing.
Goldman: The country has voted and we need to make a success of it. We need the right attitude to identify the challenges and opportunities.
Molyneux: We welcome this opportunity; as a global player with expertise in dealing with various trading frameworks we have the experience and global structure to cope with any challenges.

What is the most unusual project you’ve worked on?
Curran: The reusable Pokito hot-drinks cup: it is neither disposable nor sold to food processors looking to produce millions of packs, but to environmentally aware consumers.
Turner: I was asked if GPI could develop a paper cup that the consumer could eat once the beverage had been consumed – who knows where the future will take us.
Brears: To construct a transformer pack format suitable for food and that turned into children’s.
Frankel: A longstanding client, the Cambridge Gecko, uses our round deli containers to hatch gecko eggs.
Goldman: The challenge to take out plastic from fresh produce packaging has raised some ingenious options to deal with regular and irregular shapes of fruits and vegetables.

If I could change one thing about the industry it would be…
Curran: The constant desire by manufacturers and suppliers to pacify and satisfy every client and market leads to smaller volumes, lots of products and poor economies of scale. So I’d like a bit more product uniformity.
Turner: To ensure the entire market understands a product made from certified sustainable raw materials.
Brears: To see a more consistent, collaborative approach to developing environmentally responsible packaging.
Frankel: That every product was designed from the ground up to be compostable or recyclable once used.
Lorenzi: To recognise the challenges to provide more sustainable solutions are an opportunity and not a threat to a business.
Goldman: I wish consumers and brands were more aware of the need to support UK talent to create world class products and services.
Molyneux: To make public perception match reality. Plastics are unique and provide social and environmental solutions to society.

Applegreen goes...green with 100% recyclable cups in all stores

One of Ireland’s leading forecourt retailers, Applegreen has confirmed that, from July, the brand will replace all non-recyclable single-use cups in stores with a new 100% recyclable cup called reCUP®.  

Applegreen has partnered with reCUP® to introduce the first commercially available paper cup that uses Earth Coating, a fully recyclable lining engineered to be processed easily through traditional paper recycling equipment and to be recycled into new paper products. Both the cup and the lid can be added to your regular recycling bin at home or at work, so customers can enjoy the best coffee on the road safe in the knowledge that they can recycle it, once they reach their office, home or nearest recycling bin!

Speaking at announcement today Conor Lucey Head of Operations at Applegreen Plc commented “At Applegreen we are extremely passionate about reducing our impact on the environment. Every day in Ireland, approximately 2 million paper coffee cups are being diverted to landfills because the interior plastic coating makes them very difficult to recycle. We are delighted to be able to make the switch and play our part in reducing non-recyclable waste.”

This isn't the first move Applegreen has taken towards sustainability. The brand, which was founded 26 years ago, has been actively working through the years on recycling and waste minimisation through the use of ‘green’ suppliers, sustainable materials, bio-diversity, energy management and water efficiency.

Holistic Approach Needed to Solve Coffee Cup Recycling Problem

Paul Foot,  a partner and patent attorney at intellectual property firm Withers & Rogers, explores innovation in the context of the proposed 'latte levy'.  

With increasing numbers of food and drink outlets offering takeaway beverages in disposable packaging, it is unlikely that the issue of packaging recycling is going to go away any time soon. The UK alone uses 2.5 billion paper coffee cups every year.  

The composition of drinks packaging lies at the root of the problem. Due to the nature of the product they hold – liquid beverages – drinks packaging needs to be sturdy and water resistant. In order to achieve this, packaging manufacturers have adopted a method by which a plastic laminate is co-extruded onto a paper or card sheet. The end result is a waterproof material, which consists of about five per cent plastic.  

Plastic is not a biodegradable substance and the issue of recycling coffee cup packaging stems more from the separation of this plastic laminate from the cardboard layer. If these two layers can’t easily be separated in the recycling process, there is a risk of contaminating the paper pulp, causing further issues down the line.  

There are recycling facilities around the world that can successfully undertake this kind of process. However, due to the complex and costly plant and machinery required, they are not widely available in the UK.  

In fact, there are only four recycling companies globally that have this capability, meaning only six million cups are recycled per year (i.e. only 0.25%).  

Stronger incentives are needed 
The war on drinks packaging waste is being led by France, where the Government has announced plans to ban all disposable cups and plates by 2020. Whilst a similar approach has not yet been adopted in the UK, calls to find solutions to the coffee cup dilemma have intensified.  

In 2016, the Liberal Democrats proposed the introduction of a 5p levy on all disposable coffee cups, but this call was rejected. This debate has been reignited with a report issued in December 2017 by the Environmental Audit Committee. This report suggests that, similar to the plastic bag charge (which has proved to reduce the use of plastic bags by 83%), a coffee cup charge of at least 25p could reduce the use of disposable cups by up to 30%.  

If such a levy was introduced, the funds could be allocated to invest in improved recycling infrastructure and reprocessing facilities. While this would have a positive effect, it wouldn’t necessarily provide a long-term solution, and it would take a long time to implement.  

Stronger legal measures, such as those applied in France would have greater effect. For example, a move to ban all disposable coffee cups by a certain date would force manufacturers and coffee retailers to invest heavily in R&D activities to find new recycling or manufacturing methods or innovative new cup materials.  

Some retailers have already introduced schemes to try and dissuade consumers from using disposable coffee cups. In particular, there has been a push for the adoption of reusable cups but this approach is unlikely to gain widespread appeal and current uptake is only around 1%. The convenience of being able to collect takeaway drinks as and when needed will be hard to overcome, even if discounts are available to those bringing a reusable cup. Such discounts alone are unlikely to change behaviour significantly.  

Innovating the way to the future  
Fresh approaches are urgently needed to tackle this recycling problem. This is likely to involve sector design specialists and others across the supply chain working together to find a holistic solution to reduce drinks packaging waste.  

A number of major players in the coffee cup industry - Benders Paper Cups, Bunzl Catering Supplies, Caffe Nero, Dart Products Europe, Greggs, Huhtamaki International Paper, McDonald's UK, Nestle, Pret a Manger, Seda Group, Starbucks and Stora Enso - recently signed up to an agreement with the Alliance for Beverage Cartons and the Environment (ACE UK), with the aim of working towards a long-term solution. However, to date, examples of innovation activity appear few and far between.  

Instead, there are some signs of progress from a number of smaller, innovation-led businesses. Set up in 2016 by entrepreneur Martin Myerscough, Frugalpac has developed an alternative cup design. In their design, instead of virgin paper laminated with a thin layer of plastic, the cup has a plastic liner that is lightly glued in place, so that it can be easily separated from its recycled cardboard shell at a standard paper recycling mill. Recycled board can be used in this way as no part of the board needs to be in contact with the drink itself, in which case virgin paper stock would be required for regulatory reasons. Frugalpac has protected this concept with a UK patent - GB2538429 - and is currently in talks with several major coffee retailers to supply their cups.  

Another recent innovation is the 'reCUP', by Smart Planet Technologies Inc in California, USA. Unlike the coating of standard paper cups, the makers of the reCUP claim that its 'EarthCoating' formation can be easily washed out in the recycling process; allowing the paper to be recycled. They also claim that no changes need to be made to the cup manufacturing process and the cost of materials remains the same. In theory at least, this innovation has much potential and could solve many of the problems associated with standard cups.  

Opportunities and threats  
It is clear there is no quick-fix solution to the problem of coffee cup recycling and there are many factors to consider.  However, for established cup manufacturers and recyclers, there is a danger they will lose the initiative to start-up businesses who are able to see the problems and solutions in a new light, and disrupt the industry. Therefore, they need to aggressively meet this challenge with new solutions, even if it means their existing business could suffer in the short term.  Otherwise, they risk being the Nokia of the paper cup industry.

California's answer to the Aussie coffee cup crisis

To read this media coverage in Packaging News AU, click the following link: http://www.packagingnews.com.au/sustainability/california-s-answer-to-the-aussie-coffee-cup-crisis#d5Sz5HMDgLBL6giM.99    As Craig Reucassel's War on Waste series tackles the issue of disposable paper cups this week on the ABC, a Californian campaigner is preparing to offer Australians a new solution.   As Reucassel will point out to consumers in the next episode tonight, traditional paper cups are too difficult to recycle because of their interior plastic coating.   Specialised equipment needs to be put in place to remove the plastic, but even then, the process is burdensome and costly, and ultimately, the economics aren't in place to incentivise recyclers to even try to recycle paper cups.   Will Lorenzi, the president of California-based Smart Planet Technologies (SPT), believes he has a solution to this widespread problem in the form of the R3 cup, which is engineered for recyclability.   He's already been working to effect change by way of the cup in the US and the UK, and is now discussing his options with vendors in Australia.   The cup is currently in use in a variety of coffee houses in the US, and will be commercially available in the UK starting July 2017, Lorenzi says.   In Australia, a company called Closed Loop Environmental Solutions, which has been in talks with Lorenzi, is also currently investigating an economically feasible collection and recycling program called Simply Cups.   “SPT is finalising a partnership with Simply Cups, Australia’s recently launched coffee cup recycling program, to ensure the cups are collected for recycling,” Closed Loop sales and marketing manager Brendan Lee said.   The R3 cup from SPT has an interior coating called EarthCoating that works just as well as polyethylene in forming the cup, according to Lorenzi.   It looks the same for the consumer experience, but for the recycler the cup recycles as if there is no coating at all.   “This allows all of premium fibres to be recycled efficiently and profitably by traditional residential recycling without specialised equipment, and that's the best way to solve this problem,” Lorenzi says.   "Change the coating, and the paper cup becomes a valuable material to recycle."