Dunkin’ Donuts Working On Ditching Styrofoam Cups Nationwide By 2016

Soon these cups will belong to the non-recyclable past. (m01229)

While Dunkin’ Donuts previously announced it would comply with a new law in New York City banning styrofoam cups and containers, which goes into effect today, the company might bring its new plastic, recyclable cups to the rest of its locations across the country as well.

Replacing the familiar styrofoam (actually expanded polystyrene, for you sticklers) cups in NYC wasn’t easy for the company, the Huffington Post reports, going through tests of double-layered paper cups and others in an attempt to find something cheap and disposable.

The company finally settled on beverage containers made from polypropylene, a type of plastic that’s recyclable, unlike styrofoam. Those cups might be the future for Dunkin’ Donuts stores across the country, as a company rep told HuffPo that they’re being tested in select locations in Massachusetts, Vermont and California right now.

Dunkin’ is also eyeing other alternatives with the goal of phasing out styrofoam completely in 2016. That would save the country’s landfills a lot of waste, as HuffPo notes that the company sells 30 cups of coffee every second.

The Dunkin’ rep says that the company will settle on a replacement for styrofoam by the end of 2015, and in the meantime, Dunkin’ will “continue to evaluate and test all available cups until we believe we have found the best solution based on cost, performance, commercial viability and environmental impacts.”

Dunkin’ Donuts Is Phasing Out Styrofoam Cups [Huffington Post]

by Mary Beth Quirk via Consumerist