3 ms·

This stat gets thrown around for a lot of different kinds of reusable products but what no one ever mentions is what does environmentally friendly actually mean

This stat gets thrown around for a lot of different kinds of reusable products but what no one ever mentions is what does environmentally friendly actually mean. When I have looked it up its always simply looking at energy usage to produce the product when by far the biggest impact of our throwaway products is that they end up blowing around the streets or they fall in to the ocean. And even if you do put them in the recycling bin they mostly end up shipped to the 3rd world to be burned or thrown in the ocean. Also even just looking about the energy usage, 70 times is quite low. A proper coffee cup lasts a lot longer than 70 uses. Really they don't ever break unless dropped.

sjy 7y ago
I have a few reusable, resealable glass coffee cups, and I don’t know that I got 70 uses out of them before I dropped one as I was washing it and it shattered. I’ll be buying plastic reusable cups next time, even though they’re not as nice to use, because for someone as clumsy as me, the risk of breaking a glass object that needs to be hand-washed regularly and is intended to be used while moving around is quite high.
- exclusiv 7y ago
  Stainless steel is ideal. Wide mouth Rtic or similar is easy to hand clean if you don't have a dishwasher.
michaelt 7y ago
Depends on the ratio of one-time customers to regular customers. I go to a coffee shop maybe once a year - perhaps I'm running late and didn't have time to make coffee at home, or I'm out with friends and they spontaneously suggest getting coffee. Needless to say, I've never had a reusable mug with me in such circumstances! So customers with behaviour like mine are going to be getting a new mug every time, or not patronising coffee shops. If one in every 70 customers is someone like me, switching to a 70-use-to-break-even cup would be a net loss for the environment even if you get 100% reuse among regular coffee shop patrons.

sjy 7y ago

I have a few reusable, resealable glass coffee cups, and I don’t know that I got 70 uses out of them before I dropped one as I was washing it and it shattered. I’ll be buying plastic reusable cups next time, even though they’re not as nice to use, because for someone as clumsy as me, the risk of breaking a glass object that needs to be hand-washed regularly and is intended to be used while moving around is quite high.

exclusiv 7y ago
Stainless steel is ideal. Wide mouth Rtic or similar is easy to hand clean if you don't have a dishwasher.

michaelt 7y ago

Depends on the ratio of one-time customers to regular customers. I go to a coffee shop maybe once a year - perhaps I'm running late and didn't have time to make coffee at home, or I'm out with friends and they spontaneously suggest getting coffee. Needless to say, I've never had a reusable mug with me in such circumstances! So customers with behaviour like mine are going to be getting a new mug every time, or not patronising coffee shops. If one in every 70 customers is someone like me, switching to a 70-use-to-break-even cup would be a net loss for the environment even if you get 100% reuse among regular coffee shop patrons.