Coffee at Home: Packaging beans

People who prepare their coffee from the beans usually get them prepackaged in a bag. Different brands of coffee sell their prepacked beans in different kinds of bags, ranging from plastic to paper. These packages attribute only about 3% of the coffee industry's carbon footprint (Fornero, 2020), and as such its impacts on the environment are less discussed than the other pollutive processes in the industry.

According to a study by Salomone (2003), packaging contributes negligibly to greenhouse gases emissions, ecotoxicity, and ozone layer depletion. This suggests that attention on packaging used in the coffee industry is not the main concern when dealing with environmental impacts. While true that there are bigger pollutants in the coffee industry, unsustainable packaging has been forefronted by many climate change activists, making the topic of sustainable packaging relevant in today's context. 

The problem of packaging is similar to that of coffee cups, which was previously discussed. The ambiguous and misleading logos indicating that the packages are recyclable are just not helping consumers to understand the proper means of recycling. Many times, packages containing beans would be made of two or more materials. This would mean that for effective recycling, materials must be separated, else, it would be as good as throwing them into the landfills.

While some may argue that there are biodegradable packaging available, it is found that only up to 60% of materials from such packages can biodegrade (Fornero, 2020). However, depending on the materials, the remaining 40% can be recycled in their corresponding bins. In this sense, biodegradable packaging seems like a favourable alternative to recyclable bags. However, to really reap the benefits of such packages, people have to step up and play their part in recycling. This seems difficult as recycling rates in many countries fall below 50%, suggesting that the non-biodegradables are highly likely to end up in landfills.

To conclude, coffee packaging contributes little to the pollution brought about by the coffee industry. However, that should not be a reason to ignore the problem as a little bit of pollution goes a long way, especially when we consider the size of the industry. While 'biodegradable' packaging is currently the most sustainable packaging available, consumers have to start recycling properly to reap the full benefits of such packages.

Coffee at Home: Are coffee pods problematic?

Since the popularisation of Nespresso coffee pods in 1988, coffee consumers have had the luxury and convenience to enjoy a cup of coffee almost instantly and comfortably in their homes. Despite the proliferation of coffee pods from alternative brands following the loss of Nespresso's coffee pod patent, Nespresso pods remain the go-to for coffee pod consumers. However, Nespresso pods are coming under scrutiny in the 21st century, as there has been a growing awareness that the excessive use of coffee pods are polluting the environment, with many of them ending up in landfills instead of proper recycling facilities (Grant, 2020). 

Figure 1: Nespresso pods end up in landfills as they are improperly disposed of. Image source: Huntsdale, 2019.

This is a shame as Moskvitch (2019), who corroborated the finding of different researches, found that coffee pods are made of materials that are highly recyclable. The Nespresso pod, for instance, is made primarily of aluminium, which is a metal that can be easily melted and reused repeated. The catch for Nespresso pods is that they contain a silicon layer, which requires specific technologies to remove before recycling can take place. As such, consumers using Nespresso pods are required to return the pods back to Nespresso's collection points, should they wish to recycle.

Expectedly, recycling rates are low. In 2018, in the UK alone, 42% of coffee pod users throw the pods away after use. This is in spite of Nespresso's efforts to expand its recycling efforts to reach 100% recycling rates by 2020 (the goal was not achieved), by increasing its global capsule recycling points (Grant, 2020). Evidently, besides making the recycling facilities convenient to consumers, awareness of such facilities must also be strengthened. Additionally, while Nespresso wishes to define their capsules through the silicon layer embedded in their capsules (Moskvitch, 2019), removing the silicon would make the capsules more recycle-friendly, as typical recycling plants will then have the capacity to recycle these pods.

In essence, to improve recycling rates and reduce pollution of Nespresso coffee pods, the mindsets of both consumers and the Nespresso company need to change. Consumers have to be more active in recycling, and Nespresso needs to forgo its ego so that its coffee pods can be easily recycled.