Reducing Our Waste Stream, One K-Cup At A Time
June 2, 2015 | By PRN NewsWire
MINNEAPOLIS, June 2, 2015 /PRNewswire/ — UPAC2 Inc. has addressed one of the of the most contentious consumer issues of our time with the design, development, and patent pending of environmentally friendly K-Cups for the popular Keurig style home brewing coffee makers.
https://photos.prnewswire.com/prnvar/20150530/219619
UPAC2’S “Compo Cup” cup and filter mechanism are made from biopolymers designed to enable consumer products to meet strict product compostability standards and that are fully derived from plant-based annual resources. Cal Krupa, the company’s CEO and Founder, stated that, by the end of 2015, UPAC2 will have its Compo Cup and filter mechanism tested by an independent lab to assure compliance with the ASTM 6400 standard. First-generation K-Cups currently in use are made with up to seven layers of plastic, making the cups very difficult to recycle, and impossible to compost.
Awareness of the massive disposal challenges of K-Cups has gone viral, with an anticipated annual consumption of K-Cups growing to 20-25 billion cups by the end of next year. Within the blogger sphere and YouTube worlds, the volume has reached deafening proportions. However, this collective voice of environmental interests has been heard throughout the coffee industry, and Keurig has publicly stated its intention to have a recyclable or compostable K-Cup in place by 2020.
Krupa added, “Our success with the Compo Cup is encouraging for several reasons. First, it utilizes a completely plant based Biopolymer material that uses no oil or petroleum. Second, we believe composting is a more cost effective and far more practical solution than recycling for this particular structure which intimately combines organics and plastics in one complex, small structure. And finally, our product will be available this Fall, offering a value proposition that is an absolute win-win across the board.”
Cal Krupa and his team are no strangers to breakthroughs in food packaging materials and designs that address landfill concerns. As the founder of Ultra Pac Inc. and during the last 35 years, he pioneered the use of recyclable and FDA-compliant post-consumer recycled materials, while creating more than 400 packaging designs and 52 design and utility patents. These food packaging designs have influenced virtually all bakery, produce, deli, and reheatable meals packages in use today.
UPAC2 Inc. is based in Minnesota with a manufacturing facility in Becker MN. The company develops, manufactures, and markets cost-effective food packaging that increases sales, improves shelf life, facilitates shipping, and reduces landfill waste.
Photo – http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20150530/219619
To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/reducing-our-waste-stream-one-k-cup-at-a-time-300091299.html
Photo: https://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20150530/219619UPAC2 Inc.
CONTACT: Cal Krupa, UPAC2, Inc., Phone: 612 518 2240, Email address:cal@upac2.com, www.upac2.com
