Queen Bean

Quote: “One can’t decide which is more exciting.”

The Queen of England is said to be delighted at the new arrival; aren’t we all? We all try to do our bit to save the planet, don’t we? Oh, maybe you’re a little confused. We can brush aside the birth of the third in line as we have something much more exciting in the coffee world: a brand, spanking new coffee cup recycling facility. The Queen and the Princess Royal were present as they opened the plant on Wednesday 17th July 2013.

Daily Coffee News By roast Magazine reports that, “Most paper coffee cups contain approximately 5 percent plastic coating (…) making the cups non-recyclable.” So, all you take-away fanatics you can now drink guilt free because, “British speciality paper manufacturer James Cropper Company [which specialises in luxury packing materials and high-quality paper] says it has a solution, unveiled at its new facility in Cumbria”.

Like all successful innovators and inventors this company has taken a simple, everyday problem and come up with a solution. Around 2.5bn coffee cups each year go to landfill in this country alone. The James Cropper Company said, “The plastic is skimmed off, pulverized and recycled, leaving water and pulp.” Which can apparently be used again in papers and packing materials: offering a much needed solution to this cup crisis.

The Queen was at the birth of this new, pioneering facility, but she left Kate and William alone at the birth of their child (or maybe she didn’t get an invite. Does the Queen need an invite?). I think we can see which one she prioritises. Kidding!!!

Anyway, congratulations to Kate and William who, like most new parents, have no idea how important coffee will become in their daily lives. I’m sure they’re grateful and relieved that this new coffee cup recycling plant will be off-setting their future, caffeine fuelled, carbon footprints.