Popular U.S. Coffee Chain Dunkin' Donuts to Eliminate Foam Cups by 2020

New double-walled paper cups (pictured above) will be phased into U.S. restaurants beginning spring 2018. Image: Dunkin' Donuts, Twitter

CANTON, Mass. -- As part of its commitment to serve both people and the planet responsibly, Dunkin' Donuts, a leading retailer of hot, brewed coffee, announced plans to eliminate all polystyrene foam cups in its global supply chain beginning in spring 2018, with a targeted completion date of 2020. In U.S. restaurants, Dunkin' Donuts will replace the foam cup with a new, double-walled paper cup. The majority of Dunkin' Donuts' international markets are currently using paper cups, and the brand will work with its franchisees to eliminate foam cups from the remaining international markets by the 2020 goal.

Also read, Canadian Coffee Chain Second Cup Moves to Clean Label Beverages

The move complements Dunkin' Donuts' earlier commitments in the U.S. to have 80% of fiber-based consumer-facing packaging certified to the Sustainable Forestry Initiative Standard by the end of this year; eliminate artificial dyes from its menu; build new, more energy-efficient restaurants; and partner with the Rainforest Alliance to source certified coffee.

The new, double-walled paper cup is already in use at Dunkin' Donuts' next generation concept store, which opened in mid-January in the company's birthplace of Quincy, Mass. It will be introduced at all Dunkin' Donuts restaurants in New York City and California in spring 2018, and will be phased in across the U.S. as supplier manufacturing capabilities ramp up.

The double-walled paper cup is made with paperboard certified to the Sustainable Forestry Initiative Standard and will feature the current re-closable lid that Dunkin' customers know and love. Like Dunkin' Donuts' current hot beverage offerings, the new double-walled paper cup will come in four sizes -- small, medium, large and extra-large -- and will be used for all of the brand's hot beverages, including coffee, lattes, macchiatos, tea and hot chocolate. With heat retention properties equal to the company's foam cup, the new double-walled paper cup will keep beverages hot while keeping hands cool, without the need for a sleeve.

According to Karen Raskopf, Chief Communications and Sustainability Officer, Dunkin' Brands, "With more than 9,000 Dunkin' Donuts restaurants in the U.S. alone, our decision to eliminate foam cups is significant for both our brand and our industry. We have a responsibility to improve our packaging, making it better for the planet while still meeting the needs of our guests. Transitioning away from foam has been a critical goal for Dunkin' Donuts U.S., and with the double-walled cup, we will be able to offer a replacement that meets the needs and expectations of both our customers and the communities we serve."

In 2011, Dunkin' Donuts announced that its number one sustainability goal was to find an environmentally friendlier coffee cup. Over the past several years, the brand has worked extensively to find a suitable replacement for the foam cup that met criteria for performance, environmental impact and cost.  Dunkin' Donuts' transition to paper cups will remove nearly 1 billion foam cups from the waste stream annually.

Dunkin' Donuts remains committed to sustainable packaging and will continue to explore additional opportunities to increase recycled or certified content for other consumer-facing packaging.

Since 2005, the brand has made a number of important packaging improvements in the U.S., including:

• 2005: Began sourcing a four-cup carrier made of recycled newsprint.
• 2009: Transitioned to napkins made with 100% recycled paper and added recycled content to espresso sleeves, cup carriers and Box O' Joe.
• 2014: Transitioned to bagel bags made with 100% recycled paper, saving an estimated 20 million pounds of virgin paper per year.
• 2015: Began transition of the lids for cold beverage cups from PET to recyclable #5 polypropylene, a change that will take 500,000 pounds of material out of the waste stream per year once completed in summer 2018.
• 2016: Issued a new Sustainable Pulp and Paper Sourcing policy with a goal to source paperboard certified to the SFI Standard for 80% of its consumer-facing fiber-based packaging by the end of 2018.

Dunkin' Brands, the parent company of Dunkin' Donuts and Baskin-Robbins, continues to make important progress towards its corporate social responsibility goals, including:

• Sustainable Building: In 2014, Dunkin' Donuts launched DD Green Achievement, a program designed to help franchisees build sustainable, energy-efficient restaurants in the U.S. There are now approximately 186 DD Green Achievement restaurants around the country. Dunkin' Brands has set a target to open 500 DD Green Achievement restaurants in the U.S. by the end of 2020. Additionally, the new next generation concept store now being introduced into the system is approximately 25% more energy-efficient than the previous restaurant model.
  
  
• Sustainable Coffee: In 2017, Dunkin' Donuts expanded its current work with the Rainforest Alliance to have all espresso beverages served at Dunkin' Donuts U.S. restaurants and in approximately 16 international markets made with 100% Rainforest Alliance Certified™ beans. By the end of 2018, Dunkin' Donuts Dark Roast Coffee will also be made with 100% Rainforest Alliance Certified beans. In European markets, Dunkin' Donuts restaurants also serve Fair Trade certified espresso.
  
  
• Sustainable Sourcing: As a member of the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO), Dunkin' Brands continues to participate in multi-stakeholder efforts to advance sustainable palm oil sourcing and reissued its global Sustainable Palm Oil Guidelines in December 2017. In the U.S., Dunkin' Brands has also committed to sourcing 100% of the eggs for its menu from cage-free sources by 2025 and 100% gestation crate-free pork by 2022. By the end of 2018, any chicken menu offerings in U.S. Dunkin' Donuts restaurants will have been raised antibiotic-free.
  
  
• Cleaner Labels: As part of the brand's ongoing efforts to offer cleaner menu labels, Dunkin' Donuts U.S. introduced donuts without artificial dyes in January. The brand is committed to eliminating artificial dyes from its national food and beverage menu in the U.S. by the end of 2018.
  
  
• Menu Labeling: Dunkin' Brands partnered with industry peers and consumer advocates in supporting a menu labeling mandate in the U.S. that provides guests with clear and consistent nutritional information when ordering. 

To learn more about Dunkin' Brands' CSR initiatives, please see the 2016 CSR report. The next CSR report will be published in spring 2019.

SOURCE Dunkin' Donuts