The number of travel cups sold in December rose by 537 per cent year-on-year – influenced by Brits looking to reduce their waste consumption and avoid the Government’s proposed 25p tax on disposable coffee cups.
The suggestion by UK MPs is a potential solution to target the 2.5 billion coffee cups thrown away every year, according to the Environmental Audit Committee.
This news comes as our love affair with coffee shows no sign of abating. According to The British Coffee Association, 80 per cent of people who visit coffee shops do so at least once a week, whilst 16 per cent visit on a daily basis .
Following the huge success of BBC’s Blue Planet II, which revealed the effects of plastic on our planet’s ocean life, sales of reusable water bottles are also on the rise according to Argos sales data.
One of its most popular lines is the Brita Fill and Go bottle currently priced at £10.49, which last month saw a 77 per cent increase in sales.
Dawn Ritchie, Kitchen Buying Manager at Argos, said: “We saw a huge growth in the sales of travel mugs over the Christmas period. This was partly spurred on by the popularity of shows such as Blue Planet II, as well as some of the UK’s biggest coffee chains offering compelling discounts for customers with reusable cups.
“With the recently-proposed ‘latte levy’, we expect this trend to only grow as awareness of disposable cup waste increases.”