Mother Parkers debuts recyclable single-use Keurig tea, coffee pods

TORONTO – A Canadian company is launching what it claims to be the world’s first recyclable capsules for coffee and tea, targeting consumers who love the convenience of their single-serve java boost but hate how the plastic pods end up in the trash.

Mother Parkers Tea & Coffee says the EcoCup is now available with various loose-leaf teas, including the Higgins & Burke brand, while pods containing coffee will be out in early 2015. Both will be for use in Keurig machines.

Co-CEO Paul Higgins says Mother Parkers has been developing the idea for the recyclable pods since 2006, as it recognized the growing concern about the environmental impact of the single-serve coffee habit.

“The premise we started out on was that we had to have a fabulous tasting product — that’s the key to any business success,” said Higgins following the products’ unveiling at a trade show Wednesday in Chicago.

“Our second point was around the environment. The product itself leaves a big trail of waste and we knew that was going to be a hot consumer item.”

Higgins has no doubt that the resulting waste is a concern.

“Consumers using it are feeling a great deal of remorse when they use it, but our lazy gene takes over and we just do it,” he said.

The Mississauga, Ont.-based company says their EcoCups are made with clear polystyrene, as opposed to the hard plastic usually used to manufacturer the popular pods from Keurig Inc. After brewing a cup, the user has to detach the filter from the pod, discard the tea leaves or coffee grounds in a compost, and throw the pod into the blue bin.

Recycling facilities differ by municipality, but Mother Parkers estimates these capsules can be broken down by about 75 per cent of cities in Ontario. It does not have national estimates.

Bill VandenBygaart, vice-president of business development, says ideally, the company expects to develop a “zero-waste” product within the next two years.

“This is the type of game-changing innovation that results from open competition and consumers are the ones who benefit,” he said in a statement. “There are billions of capsules thrown into landfill each year. We will change that.”

VandenBygaart said the cost to manufacture the recyclable capsules is more than the ones used now, but the cost will be “minimal” to the consumer.

The recyclable tea pods will be available for order through Amazon in Canada and the U.S., later this week, and will be rolled out at major retailers and grocery stores this summer.

Mother Parkers says there are 20 million Keurig brewers in North American homes, with 10 billion capsules expected to be used in 2014.

In the U.S., the New York Times reported that sales of single-serve coffee machines, including the two most popular brands Keurig and Tassimo, grew at a compound annual rate of 34 per cent from 2008 to 2013. Sales of coffee pods increased by a compound rate of 79 per cent over the same time period, according tomarket research firm Euromonitor International. Similar statistics for Canada were not immediately available.

Meanwhile, Keurig Canada says addressing the “environmental impact” of their machines remains a “critical priority” for the company.

“Innovation is at the heart of everything we do. We are dedicated to innovation around our brewing platforms — from new brands and product lines to more sustainable solutions,” said Valerie Ladouceur, a spokeswoman for the company.

Already, Keurig Inc., which is owned by Green Mountain Coffee, launched the Vue brewing system in the U.S. in 2012, which uses capsules that can be recycled in 60 per cent of communities. But the company says it does not expect to have fully-recyclable coffee or tea pods until 2020.

Over the years, manufacturers have attempted to address the environmental impacts associated with single-use coffees with various initiatives, including the marketing of reusable pods as an alternative to plastic capsules.