K-Cup Coffee not quite as wasteful?

[Jimmy Higgins]

A study by some people in Quebec suggest that K-Cup coffee making machines are actually less wasteful than other means of making coffee. Fewer beans, less water, less warming up. There is logic, but incomplete.

The recent study, which looked at four common brewing techniques, found that instant coffee appears to produce the least amount of emissions when the recommended amounts of water and coffee are used. This is in part because there is typically a small amount of instant coffee used per cup and boiling water in a kettle tends to use less electricity compared to a traditional coffee maker. What’s more, the method doesn’t produce coffee grounds that have to be thrown out, according to the study’s researchers.

I use one of the single brew machines, where you spoon in ground coffee into a cup/sieve, then the water brews through it into a mug. It is K-Cup, without any cups, just bags of ground coffee. This is probably the best, as you can make around up to 16 oz or so... or 8 oz if you want. And you adjust the grounds accordingly. Least waste. The benefits of both worlds.

But this is definitely an interesting rethinking of what people would typically conclude regarding K cups. Yes, K-cups produce much more plastic and cardboard waste... but unless you compost the coffee grinds, you've got more waste from the traditional coffee machine and it is using more energy.

 

[Loren Pechtel]

And what becomes of the grounds with the K-cups? Post-consumer waste != total waste.

 

[Cheerful Charlie]

I usually don't drink coffee. But when I do, I use my trusty English tea pot. It has an insert basket. I pour my coffee grounds there (cheap Columbian dark roast) and boil my water (distilled) in a big mug in the microwave. 3 minutes. Pour into waiting teapot. No disposable cups, filters, just coffee. Empty spent grounds for gardening composting, rinse, fill with fresh grounds for next batch. No screwing around with french press, no large coffee maker taking over counter space.

 

[Toni]

A study by some people in Quebec suggest that K-Cup coffee making machines are actually less wasteful than other means of making coffee. Fewer beans, less water, less warming up. There is logic, but incomplete.

The recent study, which looked at four common brewing techniques, found that instant coffee appears to produce the least amount of emissions when the recommended amounts of water and coffee are used. This is in part because there is typically a small amount of instant coffee used per cup and boiling water in a kettle tends to use less electricity compared to a traditional coffee maker. What’s more, the method doesn’t produce coffee grounds that have to be thrown out, according to the study’s researchers.

I use one of the single brew machines, where you spoon in ground coffee into a cup/sieve, then the water brews through it into a mug. It is K-Cup, without any cups, just bags of ground coffee. This is probably the best, as you can make around up to 16 oz or so... or 8 oz if you want. And you adjust the grounds accordingly. Least waste. The benefits of both worlds.

But this is definitely an interesting rethinking of what people would typically conclude regarding K cups. Yes, K-cups produce much more plastic and cardboard waste... but unless you compost the coffee grinds, you've got more waste from the traditional coffee machine and it is using more energy.

Whether or not you compost coffee grounds, they still decompose. Plastic doesn’t.

But what do I know? I paid too damn much for my gas stovetop to consider replacing it.

And I converted one fireplace from wood burning to gas burning.

 

[Jimmy Higgins]

This looks at the footprint of the product, not just waste. So any coffee that is thrown away is wasted emissions for shipping that stuff from some other continent.

I'm not making an argument, rather sharing the study and the concluded results of it. I think K-Cup is wasteful. Just because coffee burners with 1/3 of the coffee in it going to waste might make that less green than K-Cup, there are still more environmental ways of making coffee than K-Cup.

 

[ZiprHead]

What's wrong with these?
Reusable K Cup

 

[Jimmy Higgins]

It is against the will of god!

This is also cheaper.