Have you taken your reusable coffee cup out recently and found that a cafe won’t let you use it? It’s certainly happened to us a few times recently. Our local public bins have been groaning and overflowing with single-use coffee cups, some of which we have seen blown into the sea and our local countryside.

While we understand that some people are nervous about handling reusable cups, there is minimal risk to staff from handling reusable cups, something backed up by a statement signed by over 100 scientists last year. These scientists include epidemiologists, virologists, biologists, chemists and doctors, who say that based on the best available science and guidance from public health professionals, reusable systems can be used safely by employing basic hygiene. Evidence indicates that the virus spreads primarily from inhaling aerosolised droplets, rather than through contact with surfaces.

According to the Guardian newspaper in 2020, Charlotte K Williams, a professor of chemistry at Oxford University and one of the signatories, said: “I hope we can come out of the Covid-19 crisis more determined than ever to solve the pernicious problems associated with plastics in the environment. In terms of the general public’s response to the Covid crisis, we should make every attempt to avoid over-consumption of single-use plastics, particularly in applications like packaging.”

Do you run a cafe?

Check out our guide to using reusable cups safely during the pandemic here (opens in a new window): http://bit.ly/contactlesscoffee

The fabulous team at City to Sea have also come up with an easy guide for staff to handle reusable coffee cups, watch their video guide here:

One of the things that we are being told over and over by consumers is that they aren’t even bothering to take out their reusable cup because they didn’t know that so many coffee shops are accepting them once again. If you run a coffee shop, please make sure you shout about this on your social media and website – and even something as simple as displaying a poster in your window telling people that you are happy to take reusable cups is really effective. We’ve even made a poster for you, so it couldn’t be easier – simply download this one and print it out. If you would like it customised with your own logo, just drop us a note and we will do it for you!