Biodegradable Paper Cups: Inspirations from Plastic Free Penzance

Biodegradable paper cups have become a hit with food outlets and vendors. Take away containers, ice-cream paper cups, popcorn boxes, and paper coffee cups now all entail the safe and biodegradable paper material.

Biodegradable paper cups provide an excellent packaging alternative and a solution to businesses and the environment. They also help counter the packaging waste menace.

Making of Biodegradable Paper Cups

With the safety and usability of these cups, usage will continue to increase. Perhaps even your coffee shop already switched to biodegradable coffee cups, cutleries, or straws.

Or you’re wondering, what makes biodegradable paper cups so trendy and better for the environment than plastics?

Well, manufacturers use wood pulp, plant material, or bamboo to manufacture paper. Most of the paper derives from recycled paper waste and materials.

A worldwide organisation, Forest Stewardship Council, verifies paper products and labels verified paper products to enhance recycling and counter deforestation.

In 2018/ 2019, UK, despite being the largest user of forest products in the world, created 13,000 new hectares offsetting woodland usage

Plenty of paper products also come from the bamboo tree, which thrives for being renewable, thus recovers fast from harvesting. China, the most abundant wood exporter to the UK and US, has been growing the bamboo tree for over 1500 years now.

Bio-plastics are another biodegradable material used in creating food and packaging material. Bio-plastic primary raw material includes biomass sources such as pea-starch, vegetable starch, vegetable oils, micro-biota, and corn starch.

Another bio-plastic raw material is waste paper and newspapers. Meaning your paper coffee cup can now get recycled to make biodegradable plastic.

Wastepaper contains cellulose or starch vital for making bio-plastic. Manufacturers decompose the waste papers with the help of enzymes to get cellulose.

To enable waterproofing, coffee paper cups or biodegradable paper cups contain a thin plastic lining. The plastic lining can either be PLA or PE.

Credible manufacturers use PLA coating for a customer’s safety. PLA, also poly-lactic acid, is a bio-plastic, thus doesn’t contaminate food or beverages.

So recycling paper is the best way to counter plastic pollution and save the environment. Next time, dispose of that piece of paper or coffee paper cup in designated recyclable bins to ease recycling.

Biodegradable Paper Cups Success Stories

Plastic pollution has caused a worldwide outcry over single-use plastics’ massive impact on the environment. The outcome, communities have united, and companies brainstormed to find sustainable solutions.

Biodegradable paper packages, reusable water bottles, and reusable bags are some conceived solutions to the problem. Meanwhile, biodegradable paper cups came into the scene, replacing plastic and single-use coffee cups, which were and are still jamming landfills.

There are individuals who continue coming up with gilt-edged concepts to provide safer alternatives to plastic. Communities and nations also have recorded tremendous success in efforts to go green.

Penzance, a town in Cornwall, England, UK, is an example. The town achieved a“plastic-free” status from Surfers Against Sewage (SAS).

SAS targets and mobilises communities against all sorts of single-use plastics. These include straws, take away containers, cotton buds, forks, cling films, water bottles, and packages.

The now, plastic-free Penzance united against all single-use plastics, motivating over 300 Britain towns to follow suit and embrace going green.

Plastic Free Penzance is now a model and has created waves worldwide for its excellent status.

According to Penzance residents, they now use corn starch plastics instead of conventional fossil fuel plastic. In the town, small paper packs replaced plastic tubs in soap packaging, they no longer use plastic but paper straws, and all coffees cups are biodegradable.

Before, Penzance beaches were a besmirch of plastic waste. Many trash packed the seafronts creating an embarrassing blight.

SAS has earned plaudits for its aggressive single-plastic elimination mission. Their incredible plan includes teaming up with businesses, youth groups, and schools, plus urging local governments to join the campaign.

SAS urges businesses to quit plastic sales or use, and the youth help in pick-ups. There is also a steering committee assigned the role of foreseeing the mission’s growth.

Penzance is a quality case example of how communities can work together to create change. It also shows how biodegradable paper cups can help eliminate beaches’ eyesore, landfills menace, and eliminate single-use plastics.

There are other inspiring coffee cups innovations from around the globe proving how plastic has become a headache but solvable. Examples are the biodegradable waffle cup from Bulgaria and Carlsberg paper beer bottle designed to eliminate polymers.

Why Biodegradable Paper Cups?

For any business in the food packaging scene, biodegradable packaging is the go-to packaging material. Current bans target all plastic material leaving biodegradable packages as the reliable option. France, in its latest plastic ban, will outlaw all plastic utensils unless they are 50% or more biodegradable.

Meanwhile, England’s ban on plastic straws, cotton buds, and stirrers to cut down plastic waste will take effect soon. All moves against plastic are a signal to a booming biodegradable paper cups market.

The cups, being 100% biodegradable, are the most sustainable and reliable solution in the market right now. Multiple companies manufacture them, enhancing their accessibility to businesses around the world.

By being PLA coated, biodegradable paper cups are safe and comfortable. They contain no BPA, and the coating exists to make them leakproof.

The biodegradable paper cups can serve both hot and cold drinks. Thus they are reliable for several purposes.

Maximising Impact Through Branding

You can get plain or branded biodegradable paper cups. Branded paper cups provide an incredible option to cut down packaging material costs for any business through advertising.

Unlike plastics, paper costs might be a little high, thus using them as branding platform counters buying expenses.

Branded biodegradable paper cups enable growing of your brand as an eco-friendly business and enhance your profile among customers.

Investing now in biodegradable paper cups is the most sound decision any food outlet can make. Its environmental impact shows a quality alternative to plastic packaging material, and like in Penzance, it can be the driver to a plastic-free world.