During March 2020, major cafe chains McDonalds and Starbucks banned reusable cups in Australia due to the COVID-19 pandemic. While some cafes around Australia have moved to accept reusables again, most major cafe chains have not.

On Monday 22nd June, more than 125 scientists and health experts from around the world issued a signed statement to assure the public that by using the correct precautions reusable containers are safe in the current COVID-19 climate. The published documents states that:

- Available evidence indicates that the virus spreads primarily from inhaling aerosolised droplets, rather than through contact with surfaces.

- Single-use plastic is not inherently safer than reusables, and causes additional public health concerns once it is discarded.

- Where possible to employ a contact-free system for customers’ personal bags and cups.

The precautionary measure to ban reusable cups was never broadly advised against or banned in most state or territory health departments - who confirm there’s no proven benefit for hospitality venues switching to disposables.

More than a billion disposable coffee cups and lids enter landfill in Australia each year. The use of reusable cups was making significant headway on this issue pre COVID-19, and if safety is NO issue, we need the major coffee chains to move to accepting reusable cups again which will encourage the entire hospitality sector to reinstate their use, reducing the environmental burden and cost to businesses.

Read more about Responsible Cafes here.  

Read more about contactless pour methods here.

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