Starbuck's Paper Project

Starbucks Paper Project

Changing the way coffee is served

Posted: 27-Mar-2006; Updated: 20-Mar-2007

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In March 2006, Starbucks introduced a new disposable cup containing 10% postconsumer recycled content. The journey to this more eco-friendly vessel began ten years ago with an Environmental Defense-Starbucks partnership formed to explore ways to reduce the environmental impacts of serving coffee.

Starbucks' double trouble: nested cups

Given the billions of cups of coffee that Starbucks serves every year, any strategy for reducing the company's environmental impact had to address its paper cup. In the past, Starbucks often served its hot brews in two paper cups, for the sake of its customers' fingers. Because the cups are made from 100 percent bleached virgin paperboard, which has serious environmental impacts, Environmental Defense realized both the coffee company and its patrons wanted an alternative to double cupping.

"Paper is a tremendously resource-intensive product to produce," explains project manager Victoria Mills, "and the decomposition of paper in landfills generates methane, a greenhouse gas with 23 times the heat-trapping power of carbon dioxide."

After much research, tests and a series of focus groups, we recommended two environmental and economic improvements to Starbucks cups: introduce reusable cups and design a new, environmentally preferable single-use cup. To this day, Starbucks customers who bring in their own reusable cups get a ten cent discount on their cup of joeÐ'--it's one of the best ways to enjoy a green green tea or coffee.

Paving the way to a better paper cup

To tackle the problem of the paper cup, the project team challenged Starbucks' suppliers to find better materials and designs for its disposable cups. The team evaluated several designs, which included adding an insulated outer layer made from unbleached recycled fiber. (Recycled content in direct food contact applications was not yet ready for prime timeÐ'--see "An environmental first" below)

In January 1997, Starbucks introduced a corrugated paper sleeve to serve as an insulating layer instead of the second cup. The project team concluded that the sleeve, made from 60 percent postconsumer recycled fiber and 45 percent lighter than the second cup, was the best environmental alternative to double-cupping. Meanwhile, Starbucks also moved ahead with broader environmental efforts across major areas of its operations, from coffee growing and processing to store construction. Our partnership with Starbucks ended in the late 1990s, but we had gotten the ball rolling in search of a better cup.

An environmental first

Over the last decade, Starbucks and its suppliers persevered in their efforts to use recycled material in its coffee cups. A major obstacle toward a more eco-friendly paper cup was that recycled content had never before been used in direct contact with foodÐ'--especially not with steaming hot beverages. Starbucks' recycled pulp suppliers had to develop new testing protocols as well as conduct these tests. In 2004, the suppliers won FDA approval for the new cupÐ'--a first for the industry. After extensive testing throughout 2005, the cups are now appearing in over 5,000 Starbucks in the U.S., and the company says it plans to expand its use of recycled paper to other products.

"This is an important move for Starbucks, and it also clears the way for other companies to do the