Costa Coffee Innovates with New Recycling Scheme

Costa Coffee unveils a ground-breaking partnership with Podback, heralded as the UK's leading coffee pod recycling service. This collaborative initiative, spanning 142 Costa Coffee outlets, introduces an essential ecological solution focusing on single-use coffee pods.
The collaboration, initiated in August, is operational in 133 Costa stores located within Tesco and nine other high street outlets in Swindon. These locations feature convenient Podback recycling stations where customers can deposit their used coffee pods, making Costa the pioneer in UK coffee chains for providing in-store recycling services.
How does it work?
With UK coffee pod consumption on a steep rise, this initiative offers an eco-friendly alternative. The scheme, embracing a broad spectrum that includes 27 brands like Nescafé and Starbucks, caters to both plastic and aluminium coffee pods.
"We are always looking for new ways to make it easier for our customers to recycle our packaging," said Liz Higgins, Costa Coffee’s Head of Sustainability, sharing her excitement. "Through this trial with Podback, in-store drop-off points will offer coffee pod users the chance to conveniently recycle their pods with us – whether they are Costa branded or not."
"This trial gives Podback customers the opportunity to drop off their used pods at local Costa Coffee stores, a response to customer feedback telling us people want a choice of ways to recycle that fit with their daily lives," added Rick Hindley, Executive Director at Podback, who understands the pivotal role of accessibility.
What happens after collection?
Well, it's not landfill! The recycling process is thorough: aluminium and plastic pods are sorted and sent to different UK-based recycling sites. Aluminium pods are transformed into items like beverage cans and car parts, whereas plastic variants are recycled into packaging crates and construction materials.
Podback further enhances sustainability by diverting used coffee grounds to anaerobic digestion facilities, where they contribute to creating biogas and fertiliser.
A model for the coffee Industry
This initiative is a continuation of Costa’s sustainability journey, building on the success of the National Cup Recycling Scheme launched in 2018, supported by other leading coffee vendors. Its collaborative nature highlights the importance of collective industrial efforts in developing effective recycling initiatives.
"The trial with Costa Coffee is a fantastic way to normalise and simplify recycling coffee pods. Due to their multiple component materials, these pods must be sent to a specialist recycling facility," shared industry expert, Catherine David from WRAP. "Now, customers can easily drop them off in any participating Costa Coffee store. Making recycling simple is key to success, and capturing trickier items like pods at scale is an important step forward."
Leading the way
As this trial progresses, it sets the stage for wider industry adoption.
Rick Hindley is optimistic about the potential for growth.
"We are excited to be working with Costa Coffee and Tesco to make this a reality in more than 140 locations across the country," he said. "We are confident Podback customers will embrace the new service and hope that it is the first step to rolling out more drop-off locations throughout the UK."
******
Make sure you check out the latest industry news and insights at Food Digital.
******
Food Digital is a BizClik brand