2019-12-11
The ACT Government has today launched a new reusable coffee cup scheme to help reduce the amount of single-use cups in our region.
More than 40 Canberra cafes have signed up to the free ‘swap-and-go’ model which was announced last month and allows customers to order their coffee in a reusable cup that can be returned to any participating café.
“It is now easier to stay sustainable even if you forget to bring your cup along when you go on a coffee run,” Minister for Climate Change and Sustainability Shane Rattenbury said.
“Register on the Green Caffeen app, see if your local cafe is part of the scheme and order your next coffee in a reusable cup. The cafes will even take care of the washing up before the cups go back into rotation.
“Australians consume more than 50,000 cups of coffee every half an hour and use an estimated one billion disposable coffee cups every year and while paper coffee cups are recyclable in the ACT it’s much more sustainable to reduce our reliance on single use items.
“We’ve also partnered with Green Caffeen to distribute new CBR co-branded cups into rotation to demonstrate the region’s commitment to sustainability initiatives.
“These cups contain recycled content and will also be recycled into new cups at the end of their life.”
Minister for Recycling and Waste Reduction Chris Steel praised the easy to use scheme.
“We need to make the environmental solution as easy as possible and that’s what the “swap and go” system offers,” Mr Steel said.
“It’s up to everyone to help make the scheme work. The more cafes that sign up to a single scheme, the easier it will be for consumers to do the right thing.
“The Government will be looking very closely at how the voluntary scheme operates before taking further action, but regulation is not off the table for single-use coffee cups.”
To register and participate in the scheme download the Green Caffeen app on your phone from your app store.
Statement ends