Research & Innovation

Ireland’s only completely paper-free compostable cup has been launched by Zeus, the Irish global packaging solutions company. Unlike other compostable cups, the Treefree Cup contains absolutely no paper product, making it the most sustainable single-use cup available in the Irish market.

Additionally, to tackle the composting waste problem in Ireland, the cups and lids will be collected by Zeus for composting after use. By using paper-free cups and taking responsibility for collecting the cups and lids, Zeus has created Ireland’s only sustainable closed loop system. For more information, visit www.treefree.ie.

The cups were unveiled by Stephen and David Flynn of The Happy Pear. The Happy Pear is one of the first national retail brands to use the Treefree cup and the Zeus dedicated collection bins across its three cafés in Greystones and Clondalkin.

Managing Director of Zeus, Brian O’Sullivan said: “There is a lot of talk in Ireland about composting and compostable cups. Zeus has been selling compostable cups for years, but these cups are not as sustainable because trees still need to be cut down. With the Treefree cup, we wanted to launch a product that was not only paper-free but also part of a system of collection that ensures the correct composting of the cup. This closes the loop from the creation of the cup (from leftover fibres from sugar-cane extraction) to the conversion of the cup to biogas and biofertiliser.”

Stephen and David Flynn, co-founders of The Happy Pear agree that the Treefree Cup has huge potential: “We have always wanted to make the world a better place. We constantly try to make small changes to be kinder to the environment – even by eating a plant-based diet you can have an impact. In an ideal world, we’d prefer not to provide single-use cups but we appreciate that’s not really practical for our customers, so we are absolutely delighted to be among the first to use the paper-free Treefree Cups along with Zeus’ compostable bins and collection service in our cafés.

“We all have a really important role to play to ensure the cups, that start out as waste material from sugar-cane, end up broken down and turned into biogas. Next time, we enjoy a tea or coffee from a Treefree Cup, we need to put it in the dedicated compost bin in our cafés so it can be collected and composted. With this simple action, customers are making the best sustainable choice.”