More Coffeehouses in California Ban Throw-away Cups

 

A new coffee culture is forming in and around San Francisco, California. A growing number of coffeehouses there are barring paper cups. Instead, they are using glass containers or creating "bring your own" cup policies.

The movement started among neighborhood cafes in an effort to reduce waste. Now it is gaining support from large businesses in the city – and around the country.

Efforts to reduce waste

Celebrated¹ cook Dominique Crenn is opening a café in San Francisco next year that will not use to-go bags, throw-away coffee cups or any plastic. Diners who plan to buy a to-go drink from Boutique Crenn will be asked to bring their own coffee cups, a spokeswoman said.

The Blue Bottle coffeehouse company uses about 15,000 to-go cups each month at its 70 shops across the U.S. The company recently said it wants to "show our guests and the world that we can eliminate² disposable cups."

Blue Bottle is starting small with plans to stop using paper cups at two of its stores in 2020. The move is part of a promise to produce "zero waste" by the end of next year. Customers will have to bring their own cup or pay an additional³ $3 to $5 for a reusable cup. They can keep the mug or return it to get their money back.

The company's chief executive⁴ officer, Bryan Meehan, said in a statement that the new program will help guide the company on how to expand its policy nationwide.

He said, "We expect to lose some business. We know some of our guests won't like it — and we're prepared for that."

Larger coffee and fast-food businesses around the U.S. are feeling a sense of urgency⁵ to be more environmentally friendly, said Bridget Croke. She is with the New York-based investment⁶ company Closed Loop⁷ Partners. It is working with Starbucks and McDonald's to develop a substitute⁸ for the disposable coffee cup.

Today's to-go cups for hot drinks are not only made from paper. They also have plastic to prevent leaking. This makes them hard to recycle, Croke said. She admitted that it is not likely large national food and drink companies will stop using disposable cups completely or ask all customers to bring their own.

So, her company is looking for other solutions. Starbucks and McDonald's paid $10 million to a partnership⁹ with Closed Loop to develop the "single-use cup of the future." The result is expected to be recyclable and to break down naturally.

Starbucks has more than 15,000 U.S. stores and about 16,000 in other countries. It plans to test newly¹⁰ designed recyclable cups in five cities next year.

The state of California has long been a leader in creating more environmentally friendly practices.

In 2014, California became the first state in America to bar stores from providing disposable plastic bags to shoppers. Some cities in the state have passed a number of other laws aimed at reducing waste.

This year, San Francisco International Airport became the nation's first major airport to stop selling water in plastic bottles.

Starting in January, cafes and restaurants in Berkeley, California, will charge 25 cents for disposable cups. San Francisco is considering similar legislation¹¹.

Many coffee drinkers at the Blue Bottle coffeehouses in the San Francisco area have accepted banning disposable cups.

"Of course it's a good idea," said Tracy Schroth, a writer who was buying a drink at a Blue Bottle cafe in Oakland, California. "It's such a small step to ask people to bring their own cup. People just have to get into the mindset."

At a Blue Bottle store in San Francisco, electrician¹² Jeff Michaels said he does love the coffee. But, he does not want to pay more if he forgets to bring his own cup. "I paid almost $7 for this coffee," Michaels said. "How much are people willing to pay for a coffee?"

Kedar Korde owns a small café. He is hopeful that one day it will become normal for coffee drinkers to carry around reusable mugs. Korde's Perch¹³ Cafe in Oakland stopped using paper and plastic cups in September.

He decided¹⁴ to make the change after his 9-year-old daughter's school cleaned up waste at Lake Merritt, near his cafe. The students found his cafe's disposable cups in the water.

His daughter joked that she should not have to clean her room if he could not keep his own things out of the lake. He took her words seriously.

"We're a small coffee shop. We're not going to save the world," Korde said; but, he added, "Our cups are no longer winding¹⁵ up in the lake."

Words in This Story

cup - n. a small round container that often has a handle and that is used for drinking liquids (such as tea and coffee)

eliminate - v. to remove (something that is not wanted or needed) : to get rid of (something)

disposable - adj. made to be used once or only a few times : made to be thrown away after one use or several uses

customer - n. someone who buys goods or services from a business

mug - n. a large drinking cup with a handle

guest - n. a customer at a hotel, restaurant, etc.

practice - n. something that is done often or regularly

recycle - n. to make something new from (something that has been used before)

winding up - phrasal verb. to find someone or something in a particular place or situation

1 celebrated   

adj.有名的，声誉卓著的

参考例句：

• He was soon one of the most celebrated young painters in England.不久他就成了英格兰最负盛名的年轻画家之一。
• The celebrated violinist was mobbed by the audience.观众团团围住了这位著名的小提琴演奏家。

2 eliminate   

vt.排除，消除，根除

参考例句：

• Can we ever eliminate poverty from the world?我们有朝一日能消除世上的贫困吗？
• You must eliminate an unknown quantity.你必须消去一个未知数。

3 additional   

adj.添加的，额外的，另外的

参考例句：

• It is necessary to set down these additional rules.有必要制定这些补充规则。
• I think we can fit in an additional room.我想我们可以再加建一间房子。

4 executive   

adj.执行的，行政的；n.执行者，行政官，经理

参考例句：

• A good executive usually gets on well with people.一个好的高级管理人员通常与人们相处得很好。
• He is a man of great executive ability.他是个具有极高管理能力的人。

5 urgency   

n.紧急，迫切

参考例句：

• In case of urgency,call the police.一旦发生紧急情况，打电话给警察。
• This is a matter of great urgency.这是一件十分紧急的事情。

6 investment   

n.投资，投资额；(时间、精力等的)投入

参考例句：

• It took two years before I recouped my investment.我用了两年时间才收回投资。
• The success of the project pivots on investment from abroad.这个工程的成功主要依靠外来投资。

7 loop   

n.圈，环(状物)；回路，循环；v.(使)成环

参考例句：

• Loop the curtains up.把窗帘卷起来。
• He bends a wire into a loop.他将铁线弯成圆圈。

8 substitute   

n.代理，代理人，代用品，代替物；vt.代替；vi.替代，取代

参考例句：

• Can you substitute for the singer who is ill?你能替一下那位得了病的歌手吗？
• Yogurt is a perfectly acceptable substitute for cream in cooking.酸奶是烹饪用的特别受欢迎的奶油替代品。

9 partnership   

n.合作关系，伙伴关系

参考例句：

• The company has gone into partnership with Swiss Bank Corporation.这家公司已经和瑞士银行公司建立合作关系。
• Martin has taken him into general partnership in his company.马丁已让他成为公司的普通合伙人。

10 newly   

adv.新近，最近；重新，再度；以新的方式

参考例句：

• Have you reviewed for this newly published novel?你给这本新出版的小说写书评了吗？
• It is a newly planted tree and it has not established yet.这是一颗新栽的树，还没有扎下根来。

11 legislation   

n.立法，法律的制定；法规，法律

参考例句：

• They began to draft legislation.他们开始起草法规。
• The liberals band together against the new legislation.自由党员联合一致反对新的立法。

12 electrician   

n.电工，电气技师

参考例句：

• She said she would find an electrician for us.她说她要给我们找一个电工技师。
• We need an electrician to mend the iron.我们要请电工修理熨斗。

13 perch   

n.栖木，高位，杆；v.栖息，就位，位于

参考例句：

• The bird took its perch.鸟停歇在栖木上。
• Little birds perch themselves on the branches.小鸟儿栖歇在树枝上。

14 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

15 winding   

n.绕，缠，绕组，线圈

参考例句：

• A winding lane led down towards the river.一条弯弯曲曲的小路通向河边。
• The winding trail caused us to lose our orientation.迂回曲折的小道使我们迷失了方向。