Waste company Renewi has partnered with international cup company Beautiful Cups to give a new life to around 11 million disposable coffee cups in the Netherlands this year.
Image: The coffee cups of Beautiful Cups are made from 95% paper/cardboard and 5 % plastic. Photo: courtesy of Renewi plc.
The coffee cups of Beautiful Cups are made from 95% paper/cardboard and 5% plastic (PE), and are therefore suitable for recycling to a secondary raw material. The cups are Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certified.
Renewi said that it collects the cups in bags from businesses throughout the Netherlands. The cups are then transported to Renewi’s Breda site to be baled prior to sending to processing partner WEPA.
Upon separating the PE plastic interior of the cup from the cardboard exterior, the paper is recycled into toilet paper and the PE plastic is recycled separately.
Beautiful Cups CEO Robert Wolff said: “The aim of the circular collaboration between Renewi and Beautiful Cups is to support companies and organisations in achieving their sustainability goals.
“Together with Renewi we not only ensure that the coffee cups are processed in a sustainable way, but also contribute to the preservation of the rainforest.”
The partners are planning to increase the amount of cups that are recycled to over 50 million cups annually, in the next three years.
Renewi Commercial Waste Netherlands Division managing director Otto de Bont said: “By working with Beautiful Cups we offer our customers a sustainable concept that brings Renewi’s purpose to life – giving new life to used materials by recycling and recovering waste into valuable secondary raw materials.
“It is a completely circular process as the products made from the cups can be supplied back to the original customer, in addition to making a difference to our planet through planting new trees in our largest rainforests.”
Renewi said that the coffee cups of Beautiful Cups will be offered in ten countries from next year.