Toxic Coffee Pods Invade The Lucky Country

In June 2014 there were reportedly 1 million coffee capsule machines in Australia each processing an average 3 pods per day. Following the Christmas period, it is now estimated that this number has increased by a quarter of a million which will add another three quarters of a million pods per day to waste.  This means that Australians are now throwing more than 3 million capsules into landfill every single day.

The Ethical Coffee Company (established in Switzerland by former Nespresso CEO) has developed a genuine espresso, that fits Nespresso machines, is about the same price and the capsule is totally environmentally friendly and biodegrades in just 180 days. This premium quality coffee and capsule system is the only one of its type in the world and is now available to Australian pod coffee drinkers through The ecoCaffe Company (www.ecocaffe.com.au).  

Here are some facts:

·         In the first 9 months of 2014 it was reported that US consumers used over 30 billion pods. All made from plastic and none of them were biodegradable

·         In 2013 it was estimated that Nespresso had sold 28 Billion capsules worldwide. All made from aluminium and none of them were biodegradable

·          Aluminium pods will stay in landfill for over 150 years

·         Plastic pods will stay there for over 500 years!

In Australia, we love our coffee pods and with the market forecast to double in the next 5 years, you can just imagine what that means in terms of waste. Between 2015 and 2019 we will consume enough tiny plastic and aluminium pods worldwide to wrap around the globe nearly 200 times. How many of those will sit in landfill? The impact will be catastrophic.

While these numbers on a global scale are mind numbing, the issue for us here in Australia is no less real.

For years the media focus has been solely on Nespresso aluminium pods and as if that wasn’t bad enough, over the last 18 months, we have seen a huge jump in usage with the arrival of plastic pods in supermarkets. It is now estimated that as many plastic pods are sold as aluminium ones.

So now with this phenomenal growth and our love of capsule machines is it possible to sustain our love of pod coffee but with less environmental impact?

The Ethical Coffee Company coffee is a genuine, reasonably priced, premium quality alternative and the capsule is totally environmentally friendly, so we can all have our cake (or coffee) and eat it too.

For more information visit www.ethicalcoffeecompany.com or www.ecocaffe.com.au