Remember when McDonald’s stopped using Styrofoam containers? This was a big win for the environment.
But there are still some major offenders. Dunkin Donuts and their styrofoam cups add millions of styrofoam cups to landfills everyday. In December of 2004 Fast Company reported that Dunkin Donuts was serving over 2.8 Million cups a day.
Styrofoam cups also have potential health hazards. Styrene is transferred from the cups into your coffee. The health affects are not fully known at this time but adding chemicals to your food and drinks is usually not a good idea.
So what can you do?
- Avoid/boycott places that use styrofoam.
- Use a refillable cup. Most places will give you a discount for bringing your own cup.
I used to get coffee from Dunkin Donuts almost everyday. I bought one of the refillable cups and used it for about a year. The refill price was almost half the price of a regular cup. They jacked the refill price up and I abandoned ship and went to Starbucks. I reuse their paper cups and get $0.55 refills. If I rinse and dry the cup right away I can make it about a week on one paper cup before it starts to leak.
So not only can you save some money but you can help make the earth a better place to live for future generations at the same time!