Paul Campbell
Highland Cup Movement, 2023
Around 200 million single use cups are used and discarded in Scotland every year. Only 4% of these are recycled. Something needs to change.
So, today, Thursday 20 April 2023, at the Eden Court Theatre in Inverness, an innovative new reusable cup scheme, Cup Movement® in the Highlands, was launched by environmental charity Keep Scotland Beautiful.
A recent survey highlighted that 81%[1] of people in the Highlands thought takeaway venues needed to do more to make it easier for people to buy and use reusable cups if they wanted to while 90%[2] are concerned about the environmental impact of takeaway cups being littered.
In response the pilot reusable cup scheme has been developed in partnership with local businesses that sell takeaway drinks in the area around the NC500 route. The scheme uses innovative App technology from cup system suppliers Vytal. Now 25 businesses have signed up to trial the scheme, running until Autumn 2023, with the aim to make it easy for people to make the switch from single-use cups to reusable ones for their takeaway drinks.
And it couldn’t be easier to borrow a cup:
1. Download the Vytal app.
2. Order your favourite brew.
3. QR code from the customer and cup scanned.
4. Return within 14 days.
5. Repeat.
Excitingly, during May those that download and use the Vytal App for the first time will be able to enjoy a free hot drink!
Catherine Gee, Deputy CEO of Keep Scotland Beautiful, said: “While the convenience of single use cups often wins over reusable options, they come at a cost, to our environment, and also for those businesses using them to sell their hot and cold drinks in.
“Single use cups are a classic example of the throwaway culture that we want to help change. Millions of single use cups are wasted every year, and we want to make reuse the norm.
“Our planned trial of a reusable cup scheme in collaboration with NorthCoast 500, Zero Waste Scotland and Highland Good Food Partnership builds on the learning from our innovative Cup Movement® in Glasgow.
“I’d urge everyone to download the Vytal App and get drinking guilt free coffee.”
Tara Jaffray, owner of Corner on the Square in Beauly, said: “We all have to take the chance to do our bit, and reduce waste at every given opportunity. As a new owner of a hospitality business offering takeaway, I am very conscious of the amount of single use cups we use. I am delighted to be taking part in this trial initiative and hope to educate and encourage as many customers as possible to join the Highland Cup Movement.”
Cup Movement® in the Highlands is funded through the Bring It Back Fund, a £1.4million fund launched by long term partners UK environmental charity Hubbub and Starbucks®.
Alex Rayner, General Manager at Starbucks UK, said: “We are really proud that Keep Scotland Beautiful is receiving funding for such an important reuse initiative, and we look forward to seeing how their trial progresses. We’ve introduced an array of different reusable activations over the years to test and trial new ways to encourage reuse. Our latest work with Hubbub, the Bring It Back Fund, builds on our reusables work, aiming to find new ways to inspire people and our customers to choose to reuse. It is important for us as a company that we continue to drive industry-wide innovation, as we work to increase reusability and inspire greater reusables uptake in local communities across the UK. This forms part of our long-term goal to reduce waste and become a resource positive company.”
The scheme has also received recognition from the Scottish Government with Circular Economy Minister Lorna Slater commenting: “Switching to reusable cups is a simple and effective way to avoid waste. Lots of people already carry a reusable cup with them, but hundreds of millions of single-use cups are still being wasted every single year. The Highland Cup Movement will help encourage more people to switch to a reusable alternative and inform the Scottish Government’s plans to introduce charges on coffee cups and other single-use drinks containers, and I look forward to seeing the results."
The Vytal App can be downloaded from any App store and a map of the participating businesses near the NC500 can be found here: www.keepScotlandBeautiful.org/highlandcupmovement You can also keep up to date with the scheme and incentives on social media searching for #HighlandCupMovement