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If you work in an office, it is likely that your company has a Keurig Coffee maker that uses these little individual coffee pods to brew single cups of coffee. (They are also sometimes called coffee capsules or K-Cups if they are Keurig brand.) If you’re here reading this article, you likely already are aware of how wasteful these things are and are looking for a way to recycle coffee pods.

Obviously the most sustainable course of action would be to stop using a Keurig-type coffee machine and just brew your coffee the old-fashioned way. But if you work in an office where people are in love with the coffee machine, that can be a tough sell.

I get it. Everyone gets a perfectly balanced cup of coffee freshly made with lots of flavors to choose from. No one has to be stuck with making a pot daily and cleaning it out. There’s no stale coffee sitting on a burner all day and no dumping out wasted dregs at the end of the day. Office workers are hooked on the coffee pods.

So assuming that you’re going to continue using the Keurig or you work in a place that won’t consider anything else, let’s discuss your recycling options.

Can I put coffee pods in my recycling bin?

Short answer – check with your community, but probably not.

Most coffee pods are made of #5 plastic, and some communities do take #5 in the recycling, but they usually still don’t want coffee pods. Often it is due to size, they are simply too small to sort easily at the sorting facility. Check with your local recycling program, but most likely they will tell you to leave these out.

But the packaging says it’s recyclable!

Okay, rant time.

Companies like Keurig or Starbucks or plastics manufacturers may say that their product is recyclable, but that doesn’t make it so in your community. Companies know that consumers want to be more sustainable. So they say things like, “This plastic is 100% recyclable.”

Well, sure it is. All plastic is technically recyclable but it will only be recycled if it can easily be separated from other recycled materials and if there is a manufacturer near you that wants it. And in most cases, there isn’t. I know our solid waste district is very frustrated by this type of greenwashing which confuses people about what they can and can’t recycle and makes their job more difficult. Defer to the rules of your community recycling program.

So what should I do with coffee pods?

There are some options, but they will all involve a little extra work and/or expense.

Easiest Coffee Pod Recycling

The easiest option is to use Keurig’s mail back recycling program. You have to buy boxes for gathering up the pods and once a box is filled, you mail back to Keurig. You don’t have to try to separate the plastic from the filter, the foil lid and the grounds. Just throw the used pods into the box. It comes with a prepaid label for mailing back. They separate the different materials in the pod and recycle them.

Cheapest Coffee Pod Recycling

If you want to recycle on the cheap and are willing to drop off your pods, there are Terracycle dropboxes at Subaru dealerships that take coffee pods. Check the map to see if there is a drop location near you. These boxes accept disposable coffee cups, creamer capsules and candy/snack wrappers as well.

Next Cheapest Coffee Pod Recycling

You could also send your plastic coffee capsules along with other #5 plastic to Preserve, however, their program is currently on hold due to Covid-19. Check back for this option in fall 2021.

Most Multi-Purpose Recycling

To recycle a bunch of common break room disposables along with your coffee pods, you can order a Break Room Separation Zero Waste Box from Terracycle. In this box, you can throw in your coffee pods, tea accessories, plasticware, snack bags and more. And unlike with the Keurig recycling box, brands don’t matter, all are accepted. Terracycle also offers a Zero Waste Pouch for coffee capsules and has some other Zero Waste Box options that include coffee pods as acceptable items to include.

Best option – ditch the disposable coffee pods

If you can convince your office to switch to reusable/refillable coffee pods, that would be a great step in the right direction. Try bringing in some refillable pods and good coffee and offer it to coworkers as an option. Make it easy for them to switch and they might be open to it.

For home use, if you like to make coffee by the cup, you could also try pourover coffee. That’s what we do at my house because I need to drink low acid coffee and my SO prefers the real stuff. It takes a little longer to make, but it’s smooth and delicious once you get the hang of it. You might never go back to traditionally brewed coffee.

More recycling questions? We’ve got answers to many of your common recycling issues.
Visit the Recycling page.

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