Friday 10 January 2020

Coffee drinkers blame ‘forgetfulness’ for not using reusable cups

Hubbub hopes to double the uptake of reusable cups for hot drinks in the UK by changing people’s behaviour.

Research by the charity found that Britons buy an average of 4 take away hot drinks each week, with 1 in 5 buying at least one a day.

The research also found that over two thirds of people have their own reusable coffee cup but only 1 in 6 use them every time they buy a hot drink.

The most common reason for this gap in usage is consumers forgetting to take their cup with them when they leave home in the morning.

Hubbub says that only 5% of drinks are bought in reusable cups. Its campaign aims to double this to 10% which, it claims would save 150 million paper cups a year.

The initiative has been funded by Starbucks 5p charge on drinks purchased in a paper cup across its stores nationwide.

The Grab Your Cup campaign aims to remind people to take their reusable cups in the morning, and will encourage tea and coffee lovers to make it the norm to drink from a reusable cup.

The campaign will start in Manchester and will spread to other UK cities throughout 2020.

Haley Drage Vice President, Public Affairs, Starbucks EMEA said: “The Grab Your Cup campaign in Manchester is a unique way to encourage people to always carry their reusables whilst on-the-go and addresses one of the key barriers to more customer adoption. We are excited to try something new and see the kind of impact that it can have”