The aftermath of Covid-19 begins filling the ocean with more plastic

The COVID-19 pandemic has seen an increase in the UK’s consumption of plastic cups after reusable cups were temporarily banned from coffee shops. Chains, including Starbucks which had previously introduced charges on single-use cups, introduced the ban for fear that it would contribute to the spread of the virus. Many UK pubs that reopened are also serving only in plastic cups.

Since then 119 experts from 18 countries have confirmed that reusable plastic cups are perfectly safe as long as they are washed thoroughly, and social distancing is enforced. However, many are still opting for single use plastic cups, and campaigners have accused the plastic industry of exploiting the crisis to lobby against bans on single-use plastics. 

Prior to lockdown, the UK saw the use of reusable cups soar, with big retailers such as kitchenware chain Lakeland reporting an increase in sales of more than 100% month-on-month and homeware company Robert Dyas reported a 50% lift year-on-year.

However, even with 53% of people in the UK reducing their consumption of single use plastic prior to the pandemic, the UK still throws away 2.5 billion disposable coffee cups prior to the circulation of a pandemic.

Aston spoke to Abigail Forsyth, founder of KeepCup to tell us more about this and bust more myths about reusable cups in the current climate.

Photo by Kevin Lehtla on Unsplash