Waitrose to chuck out disposable coffee cups

The supermarket expects this will save more than 52 million cups a year

Waitrose has announced it will remove all disposable coffee cups from its shops and cafes by this autumn.

The supermarket expects this will save more than 52 million cups a year.

It currently offers a free tea or coffee as part of its loyalty scheme – in the coming weeks customers will be asked to bring their own reusable cup to use, rather than being offered a disposable one when they go through the checkout.

Waitrose will initially trial the removal of disposable cups in nine branches from the end of April.

The grocer recently committed to making its own-brand packaging recyclable, reusable or compostable by 2025, as well as phasing out black plastic beyond 2019.

Tor Harris, Head of Sustainability and Responsible Sourcing at Waitrose, says: “We realise this is a major change but we believe removing all takeaway disposable cups is the right thing to do for our business and are confident the majority of customers will support the environmental benefits.

“It underlines our commitment to plastic and packaging reduction and our aim is to deliver this as quickly as possible.”

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