Joining forces to pioneer the reuse revolution

We’re stoked to be teaming up with the iconic reusable brand Circular&Co. to reduce waste and tackle the millions of single-use coffee cups that are used, and discarded, every year. City to Sea and Circular&Co. share the vision of a circular future, where we value our resources, and where refill and reuse are affordable and accessible for everyone. Working together, and using our combined expertise, we’ll collaborate to drive change and provide the tools and support for communities and businesses to take action where they live.

Here in the UK, we get through a mind-blowing 10,000 coffee cups every two minutes – an amount that would stretch around the world 5 and a half times if placed end to end! The good news is we’re working to power the refill and reuse revolution providing a long-term solution to our single-use culture and helping people enjoy hot drinks on-the-go, without the waste.

As some of you will have heard by now, City to Sea are launching our own returnable cup scheme – right here in our home city of Bristol. And what better partner to join us as we launch this iconic project than Circular&Co. – a reusable brand striving for global change by making circular design the new standard. They design and manufacture a range of award-winning, circular reusables and returnables, leading the transition away from single-use.

Circular&Co. are the exclusive returnable cup provider for City to Sea’s Bristol Refill Return Cup scheme, providing the perfect solution to single-use, with their epic new Circular Returnable Cup. The Circular Returnable Cup not only looks great, but after just 2 uses, the CO2 emission of the Circular Returnable Cup are offset versus a single-use alternative.  Even better, its 100% recyclable up to 6 times, meaning no new material is required for 9 years and its designed to last over 500 wash cycles.

The new Refill Return Cup will enable Bristolians (and visitors to the city) to have their takeaway tea and coffee in a reusable cup which they can borrow from participating coffee shops for free and return to any participating outlet. Users can borrow the cup for up to 2 weeks and will receive reminders to return their borrowed cup. It’s due to go live to in May 2023 – watch this space!

In order to drive real, long-lasting change, we’re taking the partnership to the next level and will be working together to launch ‘The Returnable Cup Blueprint’, a year-long project to deliver a practical guide to implementing a returnable cup scheme. We want to show the world that an alternative future is possible and, crucially, how we can get there.

The project will build on the work both organisations are doing on returnable cup schemes, including the Bristol Refill Return Cup and a number of pilots that Circular & Co are involved with in the UK with other organisations including Re-universe, Blenheim Palace Foundation Trust, and National Trust.

The key deliverable from the project will be a freely available guide that provides a road map for anyone wanting to roll out their own scheme. This will feature case studies, research and insight and behaviour change recommendations for those wanting to start a returnable cup scheme. It will also delve into the practical aspects such as logistics, infrastructure and cost.

This will become the go-to resource for businesses, communities and local authorities providing them with the knowledge, guidance and practical advice needed to introduce a returnable cup scheme in their local area.