Why we don’t switch to reusable

Posted by Toby Daniels on Wednesday, 16 September 2009

“Dear readers, if you don’t drink from a reusable cup, what’s stopping you from making the switch?”

This question was asked of Planet Green’s reader’s in this post. In the piece, they make some compelling arguments as to why consumers should consider switching to reusable coffee cups:

“Take all the people who read this magazine, then persuade them to sip their morning coffee from a travel mug for one week. Result: Enough trees to fill two football fields will be spared the ax. Can’t commit to a week? Switching to reusable cups for just one day will save as much energy as using 1,000 gallons of gasoline.”

But regardless of how compelling these arguments are, consumers are not switching, at least not in large numbers.

We’d like to pose another question.  Why?

We feel that one possible answer to this question is that it is simply not convenient.

One of the problems reusable cups is that they do not fit within a consumers existing routine. If they’re commuting to work by car or public transport, or they’re rushing between meetings, a bulky mug, that requires cleaning, is not an attractive option, regardless of their desires to be eco-friendly.

While this is not excusable, it is understandable.  Eco-options, must be both sustainable and convenient, otherwise they will only ever appeal to the committed few.

Posted in: Inspiration | Tagged: convenience, cups, eco-friendly, mugs, planetgreen, reusable | 21 Comments