But the industry is making moves to reduce that waste. Keurig, which commands the largest share of the market (29 percent), is working on making all of its pods recyclable. Currently, you can recycle its K-Mug, K-Carafe, and Vue pods, along with pods for two K-Cup varieties—Green Mountain Breakfast Blend and Green Mountain Breakfast Blend Decaf.
The company says its goal is for all K-Cups to be recyclable by 2020, which will include K-Cups from major coffee brands like Starbucks and Dunkin’ Donuts.
Other pod coffee brands beat Keurig to the punch: Nespresso coffee pods, or capsules, as the company calls them, are recyclable. These are made of aluminum rather than plastic. And the pods for Starbucks’ proprietary Verismo pod coffee maker as well as the lesser known Tassimo T-Disc pods can also be recycled.
Even some pods considered nonrecyclable can be recycled with a little effort. In most cases, it comes down to a pod’s plastic shell.
Which Plastics Can You Recycle?
First, you’ll want to know the gauge of plastic in a pod. Look on the package for the number within the recycling symbol’s triangle. Plastics are categorized from 1 to 7, but not all can be recycled.
Check with your town’s recycling center or sanitation department to see which plastics it accepts.
Recyclable K-Cups (including K-Mug, K-Carafe, and Vue pods) are made from #5 plastic, or polypropylene. K-Cups considered non-recyclable are made from #7 plastic, which is a catchall for any plastic not categorized from 1 through 6.
"Polypropylene is accepted in a lot of curbside recycling programs," says Dylan de Thomas, vice president of industry collaboration for the Recycling Partnership, a nonprofit that promotes recycling. But there aren’t many towns that accept #7 plastic. He says that’s because there just isn’t a robust market for the material.
Depending on your town’s recycling rules and the types of coffee pod you use, you have a few options beyond the trash can. You can separate the components of the pod, some of which you can recycle and some of which are waste. You can also keep the convenience of pods but switch to a reusable pod coffee filter.
To read the full story, visit https://www.consumerreports.org/recycling/recycle-k-cups-nespresso-capsules-coffee-pods/.