ASCA removes paper cups from renowned coffee events in a move towards greater sustainability
In a bid to significantly reduce waste for its highly-anticipated Cup Tasters events, the Australian Specialty Coffee Association (ASCA) has partnered with The Cup eXchange (TCX), replacing paper ‘tasting’ cup with a 100% sustainable alternative that offers a superior taste clarity.
As part of a new, innovative coffee cup exchange system soon to launch in Australia, TCX has developed a 100% sustainable cup, designed to replicate the iconic take-away coffee cup, but with the objective of zero waste going to landfill.
All TCX Cups are made from 100% Tritan, a material which is BPA and BPS free, and designed to withstand hundreds of dishwasher cycles. When they do eventually reach end-of-life, the TCX cups will be removed from circulation and repurposed into new TCX cups, meaning no cups need to go to landfill or risk polluting our environment.
TCX Co-Founder, Marty Rowell commented: “We’re thrilled to partner with the ASCA for the Australian Cup Tasters Championship, it’s an incredibly influential and large-scale event in the coffee industry and it’s fantastic they’ve taken this move to choose TCX cups for its cup tasting events.
“Partnering with TCX is a fantastic way to diminish excessive waste, and educate and empower competitors, judges and guests on a 100% sustainable alternative that also offers a premium taste experience compared to paper cups.”
TCX has customised the design of its cups for the ASCA, which will be used across all of its future events, launching at the 2019 ASCA Northern Region Championship on September 15.
“In the past, we would use and discard thousands of paper cups at each event, but the challenge for us was finding a truly sustainable alternative that we could easily transport to use at multiple events” said ASCA Vice President, Kieran Westlake.
“TCX cups are a fantastic solution – not only do they eliminate waste, but the material of the cup has been designed to ensure no contamination to taste, which is imperative to the integrity of a Cup Tasters Competition.”
In Australia, 1.2 billion paper cups with plastic linings are used for ten minutes (if that!) and then discarded to landfill each year. On a mission to close the loop on the production and disposal of paper coffee cups, TCX is a technology-enabled coffee cup exchange system that will empower anyone to play a part in creating a world free of waste and pollution.
Set to revolutionise the way Aussies drink takeaway coffee, the exchange system sees users purchase TCX credits online, which gives them access to a TCX cup when visiting a participating café. They scan their phone, exchange a cup credit for a TCX cup and, once they have finished, return their cup to any participating café.
TCX has also been built with café owners and operators in mind as it is free for them to install and use – all cups, hardware, software, training and support is provided – and best of all, helps to reduce their monthly take-away cup bill to $0.
“TCX is a unique system that uses technology to deliver a better customer experience, a better economic model and better outcomes for our future and future generations, and we look forward to launching it widely to Australia in the coming months,” adds Marty Rowell.
Head to tcx.org for more information on joining and being part of the solution!