Morrisons offers customers access to coffee pod recycling scheme
Morrisons has become the first UK supermarket to offer its customers a coffee pods recycling solution.
Working with recycling scheme Podback, the retailer will be encouraging shoppers to pick up free Podback Collect+ recycling bags from its customer service desks in the coming weeks. The bags can then be filled with used coffee pods at home and taken to one of 6,500 Collect+ delivered by Yodel drop off points around the UK. All postage back to Podback will be free of charge.
Once received, the used aluminium pods will be turned into aluminium ingots for products such as beverage cans, and the used plastic coffee pods will be turned into other plastic items including furniture. Meanwhile, the used coffee grounds will go through anaerobic digestion to produce a combination of biogas and soil improver.
Lorraine Wheeler, environmental packaging manager at Morrisons, said: “Many of our customers want to brew fresh coffee at home using a coffee pod. But to date, coffee pod recycling has been confusing for consumers, with several different schemes by multiple brands. Podback offers an easy, simple scheme for all of our customers.”
Set up by Nestle and Jacobs Douwe Egberts UK, Podback’s other participating brands include Nespresso, Tassimo, L’OR, Nescafé Dolce Gusto, Starbucks by Nespresso, Starbucks by Nescafé Dolce Gusto, Cru Kafe, Artisan Coffee Co, Allpress Espresso, Colonna Coffee and Café Palmieri by Jomad Coffee.
Rick Hindley, executive director at Podback, said: “Morrisons is the first supermarket to become a supporter of the Podback scheme, as well as provide bags in-store. This is a great step forward and progress towards ensuring recycling coffee pods becomes second nature. We welcome other retailers to join to make it even easier for consumers to recycle pods in the future.”
