4 ways to make your coffee habit more sustainable

Small impacts matter

Too often when we think of sustainability, people reckon they have to do something earth-shattering that has a massive impact in order for it to count.

But that often means people often stop trying - they think their efforts aren't impactful enough.

Jayne Carmichael-Norrie is here to tell you, one of the best things you can do for the environment is to think small.

Nobody thought bringing in a charge for single-use plastic carrier bags would make much of a difference, but there has been an 85% reduction in their use since the introduction of the charge.

Make it easy

I am pretty lazy, and it can take me a fair while to from a new habit. Not only that, if something gets in the way of me forming a new habit it is easy for me to fall off the wagon and not get back on it again.

So when I was looking for a more sustainable coffee habit it had to address a few things I had to make sure the solutions I found didn't really inconvenience me that much, otherwise I will lapse back into my old ways.

Travel mugs

One relatively easy thing to tackle was getting myself into a habit of having a resusable coffee cup ready to go whenever I was out in town. There are so many great options out there, my favourite is a cork travel mug that's no longer available. There is some similar here

Save pods from landfill

Did you know about the waste the coffee industry produces?
There are loads of whole coffee beans and Nespresso pods being wasted, because they are slightly damaged, and/or not aestetically pleasing enought to be put on a supermarket shelf.

Odd Coffee started as a way to get 'perfectly-functioning but not pretty' pods and save them from landfill. I have been a customer of theirs for a while and recommend their Intense Dip Nespresso pod box

Find a long-lasting machine

I love the convenience of using Nespresso pods, but I've never loved the fact their machines are designed not to be repairable. That is a real waste, and one of the many reasons I refuse to upgrade my Nespresoo setup to the new Vertuo system.

After doing a fair bit of research on finding an option that would be longer lasting I finally found the Grind One It's a beautfiul reliable little machine. It gives the longevity I was looking for, without having to reduce my laziness (or having to use a moka pot, an espresso machine, etc.)

It has a one year guarantee on the machine and you can buy replacement parts on the Grind website. This is a great option if you are looking to invest a little bit of money on something that will last you for years.

Make it easy to recycle

Another great way to reduce the impact of your coffee habit is to decant the pods. Yes, this is a bit messy.

But you're helping the environment in a number of ways:

• aluminium pods are a lot easier to recycle.  I always now insist on buying aluminium pods.
• Extract the spend coffee grounds using the EcoPress This little device makes a tricky job so much easier.
• Add the coffee grounds to a compost bin - at local recycling or start your own compost bin if you have room