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Because we have a coffee pod recycling problem.


Single-cup coffee sales increased to almost 4.5 billion in 2017. But those pods are not easy to recycle. They are packed with coffee grounds and cannot be reprocessed using conventional methods. They have to be recycled in a very specific way.

Because of that, there are enough pods buried on the planet to circle the earth more than a couple dozen times. We took a look inside Nespresso’s facility to see how they’re trying to change that.


"You don't need to open them, you don't need to rinse them. Use them, stick them in the approved Nespresso bag and send them to us," explained Ag Choice's founder and president, Jay Fischer. 


Though Nespresso is taking action, they wouldn’t share with us exactly how many capsules are actually recycled.


In 2014, a video titled "Kill the K Cup" came out and caused an uproar against Keurig. The company received backlash because their pods contained Plastic #7, which is difficult to recycle and could contain toxins. Plastic #7 is the catch-all of plastics, making it really difficult to breakdown.



Both Keurig and Nespresso, have goals to build a more comprehensive and sustainable pod recycling program by 2020. But just having facilities may not be enough, as both companies will still depend on their consumers to send the pods back. And for Nespresso, they say the core of their focus is all about the long run.

"The reason we benefit by providing a recycling program is because we're encouraging conscious consumption, so you enjoy a really great cup of coffee with the right amount of coffee the right amount of water and capsule goes on to be recycled and it becomes another product down the line," said Katarina Wos, PR and Corporate Communications for Nespresso USA.

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