Are reusable coffee cups safe in Covid times?

The simple answer is Yes!  

Advice from the UK government states that it is up to individual businesses whether they allow the use of reusable cups and containers. If used they should be washed in hot soapy water or in the dishwasher. 

So you can ignore all that scaremongering promoted by plastics and packaging companies in the early days of the pandemic. It was suggested then that single use plastic would be safer but those fears have been contradicted by many scientists. It really is fine to use one of our glass reusable cups.

A  Scottish government report in July 2019 noted that around 200 million single-use disposable beverage cups are consumed each year in Scotland and, with no change, this is projected to increase to 310 million by 2025.

Obviously Covid19 will have impacted on these figures as thousands of office workers have stayed at home and people are travelling less. But as the cafes have opened up again, at least in our local area, takeaway coffee cups are to be seen on every street corner! The environmental issues have not gone away during this pandemic and this is a great time for us to consider our behaviour as consumers. 

I know having a reusable cup might seem like one more thing to remember when going out. But it just becomes second nature. I wouldn’t think of having a coffee in a throwaway cup nowadays. If I don’t remember my cup, I just don’t get the coffee. Now that I’m meeting friends outdoors I sometimes even bring a spare cup for them. I just can’t bear to be near a single use coffee cup! 

The Scottish government  is leading by example by banning disposable beverage cups in all their buildings (not that there will be many people in them at the moment!). And big companies are beginning to realise that things must change. For example, McDonalds are getting in on the act with their plan to introduce a reusable cup in 2021 working in partnership with Loop. Of course this will probably be a plastic cup but it will still mean less single use plastic being produced.

Our stylish and non toxic reusable coffee cups are made of glass and silicone from Australian company Joco. We chose them because of the simplicity of materials. Whilst silicone isn’t yet recyclable, it’s more likely to be recyclable in the near future than composite materials.

Why not treat yourself or give a sustainable gift to a loved one? You will feel so good that you have made another small step towards a world free of single use plastic.