Starbucks sponsors the Betacup sustainable coffee-cup design challenge

March 18, 4:13 PMStarbucks ExaminerCindy Tickle

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58 billion paper coffee cups are thrown away each year. What is Starbucks
doing to address the issue. (Flickr Photo/MyNameMattersNot)

Starbucks has taken the next step in its sustainable coffee-cup journey by sponsoring the Betacup Challenge.

The goal of the Betacup Challenge is to redesign the popular to-go coffee cup in an effort to eliminate waste. According to Toby Daniels, co-founder of Betacup, 58 billion paper coffee cups are thrown away and unrecycled, each year. That's a lot of caffeine.

Starbucks will provide $20,000 in cash prizes for the most innovative ideas. The top idea as decided by a jury will earn $10,000. While the next five ideas as decided by community ratings will divide $10,000 amongst them. Jim Hanna, Starbucks director of Environmental Impact, told Core77, the media sponsor of the challenge,

Given the complexity of the disposable cup waste issue, we need a broad range of stakeholders to become involved in finding solutions. In addition to working with local municipal governments, materials suppliers and cup manufacturers to improve recycling infrastructures, we believe in harnessing the creativity of environmentally conscious individuals to identify new alternatives. We're looking forward to seeing how people respond to the challenge."

Betacup from the betacup on Vimeo.

Starbucks iconic white paper cups have been the thorn in the company's "green" side for quite some time now. Customers have a difficult time recognizing Starbucks as an environmental leader due to the waste created by the company's 2.7 billion paper cups.

What some Starbucks critics fail to realize is the coffee giant conducted an inventory of its greenhouse gas emissions based on the Greenhouse Gas Protocal developed by the World Resources Institute in 2007. According to the results, energy use in Starbucks stores makes up roughly 80% of the company's entire carbon footprint. Therefore, conserving energy and increasing efficiency in Starbucks 16,000 stores would significantly decrease the company's impact on the environment.

Yet some environmentalists continue to focus on the paper cup and use it as a barometer to measure Starbucks environmental success. Don't get me wrong...eliminating waste whether it's from disposable cups or otherwise is a great thing. We should all make an effort to reduce, reuse and recycle. But it is important to remember that Starbucks cups are a small part of the company's environmental footprint. However, Starbucks does understand customer frustration over the disposable cup and has included it in the company's Shared Planet goals. By 2015, 100% of Starbucks cups will be reusable or recyclable. 

Addressing the issue from a whole-systems approach, Starbucks also partnered with Global Green USA last year to launch a cup-recycling program in seven Manhattan Starbucks stores. The pilot program tested the collection and recycling of paper coffee cups when combined with old corrugated cardboard.

Now, here's your chance to join the discussion and become a part of the solution. The international Betacup contest begins on April 1, 2010 and ends on June 15, 2010. Please visit Betacup for contest rules, resources and how to enter.

But until then...please use a ceramic mug in coffee shops or bring in your own tumbler.

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