Coffee consumers everywhere are still craving the good old buzz but are choosing to hold themselves accountable for their choices and how they affect the planet. With more and more information on the planet’s waste problem coming to light, coffee lovers everywhere are choosing to bin their old loved brands (pun intended!) in favour of more planet-friendly options. We’re going to make it easy for you and sift through what’s good and what’s bad. Which coffee pods are most eco-friendly?
The Pod Problem
Most coffee lovers who consume the good stuff at home are using coffee machines. Ground coffee is all well and good but sometimes you just want variety and that’s exactly what coffee machines, and their respective pods, provide! The problem is that coffee pods are often made from plastic or aluminium and these materials can sit in a landfill for as long as 500 years before they decompose – that’s a lot of waste if you think of just your yearly use, let alone everyone else’s.
Top of The Pods
The most popular coffee pods in recent years have included big names such as Tassimo, Dolce Gusto, Nespresso and Lavazza. But how do these pods line up when it comes to decomposing?
A lot of Nespresso pods are sadly not compostable at all – they do have a recycling process using schemes such as Terracycle but Nespresso have reported that only 21% of pods are recycled. Lavazza pods are plastic with no current recycling scheme, but they are working on their own brand compostable pods set to be released at the end of this year. Dolce Gusto do have some recyclable pods but these must be ordered direct from the website and returned in a special collection bag. Tassimo are offering a TerraCycle recycling scheme for their relevant pods but you do need to take these pods to a public drop-off point – which might not be close to your home (rumour has it there is only ONE in all of Scotland!)
Setting an Example – Novell Compostables
Novell compostable coffee pods are currently the only pod designed to be naturally decomposable – even when you add it to your kitchen bin the pod is totally gone within 12 weeks! The coffee is exceptional high quality and certified organic, whilst the pods themselves are Nespresso compatible to suit the most popular machine on the market. All of the flavour, none of the waste or the fuss! Without a doubt, the eco-friendliest coffee pods on the market!
Here at Novell, we get asked the question a lot. What is gourmet coffee?
Well we’re here to tell you!