Just what someone who has waited until the last minute to file their taxes needs – another cup of coffee. Or, it may be just what you need to keep going after pulling a couple of all-nighters to get your taxes in on-time – it could be you are going the extension route this year and just want a nice break.
In the spirit of going Green, Starbucks has announced “Customers Who Bring a Reusable Tumbler into Starbucks Stores on April 15 Receive a Complimentary Brewed Coffee”.
From the Press Release, here’s what they have to say:
“April 12, 2010 09:01 AM Eastern Daylight Time - Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) is giving customers around the world a bold incentive to swap the paper cup for a more eco-friendly option. On Thursday, April 15, the company will reward customers who bring a reusable tumbler into participating stores with a complimentary brewed coffee. This effort is just one of the ways Starbucks is collaborating with customers to reduce environmental impacts. The company has offered customers a discount for tumbler use since 1985.”
Well now, that’s an offer I think I can use – my taxes are done, so it’ll be more like a morning ‘cup a joe’ reward for a job well done. Also, I have been doing the reusable tumbler thing a long time; more so when I got a free insulated BMW tumbler when I bought my last car. It fits perfectly in the cup holders unlike some I have purchased, or been given as a promo – that’s one example of where bigger isn’t better. Before you buy one, you may want to size it to the cup holder, first.
But, what about those walking out of the Starbucks with paper cups? Again, from the release, “In Starbucks latest Global Responsibility Report, now available at www.starbucks.com/responsibility, the company discloses that in fiscal 2009, more than 26 million beverages were served in reusable cups in its company-owned stores in the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom. This simple shift in behavior kept approximately 1.2 million pounds of paper from ending up in landfills.”
I’m not going to do the math on this one – the figures of the paper cups not replaced by tumblers must be staggering if tumblers help keep “…approximately 1.2 million pounds of paper from ending up in landfills.”
Well, they are not oblivious to this fact and announced that “As part of Starbucks™ Shared Planet™ commitment to environmental stewardship, the company’s goal is to ensure 100 percent of its cups are reusable or recyclable by 2015.”
Wondering about your own use? They can help you calculate that, too, by going to www.starbucks.com/thebigpicture and use the Impact Calculator, powered by the Environmental Defense Fund. You can even “pledge to use tumblers every day and encourage others to do so through social tools such as Facebook.”
Enjoy your free cup of coffee on Thursday – maybe put a Post-it on the mirror to remind you in the morning. Not! That would be just another scrap of paper tossed in the landfill. Don’t you just wonder how many Post-its are in landfills?
More on this topic (04/22/2010):
Starbucks Hosts Second Cup Summit to Advance Recycling Initiatives
“We have to ensure our customers actually have access to recycling services at their homes, at work, and in our stores. We’ll only be successful if the various businesses and organizations that touch this issue are aligned and equally motivated to take action.” - Jim Hanna, Starbucks director of Environmental Impact
The two-day symposium brings municipalities, raw material suppliers, cup manufacturers, retail and beverage businesses, recyclers, NGOs, and academic experts together to drive the development of solutions that will make both paper and plastic cups more broadly recyclable.
Permalink: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20100422005536/en/Starbucks-Hosts-Cup-Summit-Advance-Recycling-Initiatives
Posted by: Peter | April 23, 2010 at 10:21 AM