Experts think that a charge would help reduce waste created by coffee cups, which cannot be easily recycled
COFFEE drinkers may soon have to pay more to take away their hot drink in a cup.
After the success of the 5p plastic bag charge, a similar scheme could follow for coffee cups, bods at the University of Cardiff have said.
Before the 5p charge came into effect last October only one in 200 bags were recycled, leaving the rest to clog up landfill sites.
Now nine in ten shoppers in England take their own bags to the high street to avoid the 5p charge, according to the report by Cardiff University.
The study has also suggested that a similar scheme could work to curb other products linked to litter and waste, including coffee cups.
Apparently, just one in every 400 cups handed out by the likes of Costa and Starbucks ends up being recycled.
This is because most cups include a plastic membrane that means they cannot be easily recycled alongside paper waste.
This suggests that other similar policies could be successfully implemented, such as a deposit return scheme on plastic bottles or a charge on disposable coffee cups
Professor Wouter Poortinga
The litter associated with plastic bottles and cans is one of the biggest problems in both town centres and on beaches.
Professor Wouter Poortinga, who led the research, said: “We’ve seen that the charge has become increasingly popular with the English population since it was introduced, and that it has changed attitudes towards waste policies as well.
“This suggests that other similar policies could be successfully implemented, such as a deposit return scheme on plastic bottles or a charge on disposable coffee cups.”
Wales was the first part of the UK to introduce a 5p charge on plastic bags in 2011.
It was followed by Northern Ireland and Scotland. England was the last to bring in the charge in October.
Yesterday, budget supermarket Lidl announced that it will stop selling its “single-use” disposable carrier bags from July next year.
Shoppers will still be able to pay for stronger, long-lasting ones costing 9p.
The company added that the move would save an estimated 63million plastic bags every year – the equivalent of 760 tons of plastic.
Shoppers will pay for carrier bags from next October
