Economical paper cup recycling…The key is in the nesting

There can be few people left in the UK that haven’t heard the clamour to recycle the 2.5 billion single use coffee cups we use each year. We also now know that all single use coffee cups can be recycled, including the ones with plastic liners. 

The real problems are getting users to dispose of these cups thoughtfully and finding an economical way to collect and transport the empty cups to the recycler.

The problem… empty coffee cups are bulky. A leading recycling company suggests that only some 100 loose coffee cups will fit into a standard waste sack, although others suggest that 60 would be nearer the mark. With 12 of these sacks fitting into an 1100 litre external bin, that’s only 1200 cups per bin lifted… costly and inefficient. 

The Leafield Envirocup XL Bin has a cleverly designed internal fitting that nests the cups in pretty much the same way as when they were delivered new, one inside the next. In this way, 500 cups can fit in the said sack and some 6000 will now fit into the external 1100 litre bin which can be lifted for the same cost… a five fold increase in efficiency and a five fold reduction in lifting costs.  

Dregs and waste liquid are poured into a central liquid reservoir before the cups are inserted through one of six apertures in the bin lid to become nested. The Envirocup XL can also be supplied with attached Enviropods for the segregation of lids and sleeves, so providing a complete collection solution. 

If cup recycling is to work environmentally, it also has to work economically and the Envirocup XL is helping achieve both objectives.