Britain should charge a 25-pence (34-cent) "latte levy" on disposable coffee cups to cut down waste and ban them if a recycling target is not met by 2023, a committee of lawmakers said on Friday.
Less than 1 percent of coffee cups are recycled in Britain because the tightly bonded plastic liner is hard to recycle, as is packaging that has been in contact with food and drink, and because of and a lack of facilities, the lawmakers said.
Chains Pret A Manger, Costa Coffee, Caffe Nero and Greggs alongside U.S. firm Starbucks are among the biggest coffee-sellers in Britain and have rapidly expanded in the last 10 years to meet increasing demand.