TAKEAWAY CUPS ARE SHIT FOR THE ENVIRONMENT – WHO’D HAVE GUESSED!?
10,000 cups every two minutes
7,000,000 every day
2,500,000,000 every year (2.5 fucking billion)
This is the amount of supposedly ‘recyclable’ take away cups are used JUST in the UK. In reality, only 1% of these cups are recycled. They are coated in a plastic to keep the card waterproof and capable of holding your soya, caramel, low fat fucking latte. Which makes them only recyclable in special specific factories, of which there are only three in the UK. Not to mention this process is more expensive. So obviously it’s ‘easier’ and ‘cheaper’ to chuck the BILLIONS of disposable cups in the dump. This isn’t even taking into account the carbon footprint from fabricating the cups in the first place, all for a quick coffee.
For a short time, people were scared of the introduction of a ‘latte levy’, which would add a 25p charge per paper cup. This is under the same umbrella as the 5p charge for plastic bags – which caused its own upheaval - but has fucking worked with an 85% reduction of plastic bags usage since its introduction. Well lucky for you the conservative government voted against this, despite having yet to offer an alternative solution for the ever-growing waste problem. Companies on an individual basis are attempting to tackle recycling themselves, with some offering a discount if you have a reusable cup. AT UCA YOU GET 10P OFF YOUR FUCKING MORNING COFFEE whereas PRET is a fucking beast and has doubled the discount from 25p to 50p. I would take advantage of that shit, save some money and clear your conscience.
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