The ‘latte levy’ could cost the coffee shop sector and its supply chain £819m, according to the Paper Cup Alliance (PCA), which represents UK cup manufacturers.
The industry group said research it has commissioned with environmental research consultancy Ecuity finds that the costs associated with a tax on disposable beverage cups outweigh the benefits.
According to the PCA, with paper cups making up 0.7% of total paper packaging waste, a levy would disproportionately hit the paper cup manufacturing sector and the hot beverage retail sector, rather than requiring all packaging producers to take equal responsibility for waste.
The report argues a 25p levy would result in 5.7% of consumers making the switch to reusable alternatives, while 8% of consumers would simply forgo making a purchase
The PCA has argued for more recycling of cups, more recycle bins in public spaces, a standardised approach across waste management companies and local authorities, and clear information for consumers through labelling.
Chris Stemman, executive director of the British Coffee Association, added: “Whilst very supportive of increasing the volume of coffee cups being recovered and recycled, we do not believe that a latte levy is the right solution. Paper cups, including coffee cups, make up just 0.7% of paper waste and any tax would be unfairly targeting coffee drinks to pay to fix an entire recycling system for all packaging. The PCA’s report is cause for concern and highlights again that just because policies such as the five pence carrier bag charge have been associated with some positive impacts in reducing plastic bag use, it does not mean that this will necessarily happen in other areas such as paper cups.
“The UK coffee industry is committed to supporting all circular economy principles, including those around packaging and waste. We support the scaling up of all recycling processes and infrastructure in the UK as the only sustainable way of creating a circular economy around paper cups, so that they are captured and recycled.”
Starbucks is trialling a 5p charge for disposable coffee cups in 35 stores across West London, the City and the West End, while Boston Tea Party and Waitrose have both banned the provision of disposable takeaway cups.
Costa has announced plans to recycle up to 500 million disposable coffee cups a year by 2020, while a number of smaller groups have announced their own measures.
