Sip and Swap
How often do you think about the take-out paper cup that holds your coffee?
The people at Forth have been thinking about it for awhile.
Takeout cups are not recyclable. While Forth has used compostable cups for the past year and a half, they wanted to reduce the amount of one-time use disposable cups.
Late in 2019 the Exchange District café introduced a to-go cup exchange program, using reusable HuskeeCups.
When you purchase a HuskeeCup at the cafe for $25, you get the cup and 30% off future coffee purchases. It’s different from purchasing a regular travel mug in that you swap out your cup for a different one at the cafe with every visit. Yours goes into the commercial dishwasher to be sanitized and swapped out for the next HuskeeCup customer.
“We’re not revolutionizing cups,” said café manager Jordan Cayer. “It’s added encouragement.”
They’ve also asked other coffee shops to take part by offering and accepting HuskeeCups at their shops. This means you can swap out your cup at more places than just Forth. So far, Parlour Coffee is on board, with others expected to announce their participation soon.
Finding the right kind of cup was important, said Cayer. “They’re nice cups, plant-based and not a big hunk of plastic.” The cups are made from coffee husk, an organic waste material that’s produced at the milling stage of coffee production. The cups are stackable, easy-to-hold and keep hot drinks hot.
People who have their own travel mugs will always be welcome to use them, and receive a discount on their coffee, too.
While it might not be an option for everyone who stops in for coffee, small changes can add up. Currently, Forth goes through approximately 450 paper cups in a week. “We want to make it easier for anyone to make a small impact.”
All Photos by Claudine Gervais
