They are not good for our planet or for us, here’s why.
How can it be a step forward when the latest status symbol in the developed world is an espresso machine whose unique feature is a single portion single use Nespresso coffee pod which is not biodegradable?
If Nespresso and George Clooney (the star of their advertising campaign) have their way every shot of espresso made in the developed world will produce one metallic pod of non-biodegradable waste. (The aluminum pod could technically be recycled if you disassembled it and separated out the paper and coffee grains?)
Why the usually politically correct Clooney has chosen this non-environmentally friendly product to attach his name to we can only assume is linked to vast amounts of money.
Even if it does make a good cup of coffee, is it worth the cost to our planet?
When I fancy a really good cup of coffee I head out to a coffee shop. We have tons of excellent non-chain cafes here in Catalonia and I love the ambience, the company, the community, the sense of occasion, the cakes and pastries that make up a coffee shop outing. Or if I fancy a special at home treat I can make a pretty good cup with my cafetiere and frothy milk wizzer. To me coffee and tea making are very wound up in the ritual of the process and abbreviating the ritual to dropping a polluting pod into a machine just doesn’t do it for me.
Another warning sign is that Nestle have a crappy business ethics track record, in the 70’s their marketing of baby formula to developing countries led to a boycott. They are smart and wealthy, ($84 billion revenue in 2003) and are capable of having a very big impact especially when combo’d with a guy we all love. All the more reason to question the product.
If my opinion makes me a Luddite http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luddite I accept the label proudly, we all have to define our boundaries and mine are made up of lots of used Nespresso coffee pods.
By Thursdays Girl. Changing the world one coffee pot at a time.
[…] earlier post entitled Nespresso Coffee Machines are Not good, has not yet managed to slow the stampede of […]
Thank you for pointing out the evils of the nespresso! I have been flabbergasted that these evil, polluting pods are so popular when it is so cheap, fast, and easy to make great espresso with a stovetop espresso pot (caffeteria, Moka express, etc.)
I did not realize these awful things were made by Nestle. It figures! By the way, despite the ongoing boycott they are STILL aggressively marketing formula in third world nations where babies still die from formula mixed with contaminated water or from formula mixed with too much water because parents cannot afford to buy enough formula powder to mix it up full strength. Oh, and they still aggressively market in first world nations, too, harming babies’ health and causing so much waste from packaging and disposable bottles and liners. (Breastfeeding creates no waste. None. At all.)
Long live REAL coffee! (and real babymilk!)
Did you know that you can easily return the used capsules to any Nespresso store? And not only the ones in CH? Have you ever asked at the nespresso stores where to dispose the capsules? Here in Amsterdam we have 2 vending points, and either one is happy to receive a bag of used capsules.
Remember: It’s not the capsules threatening ecology, it’s the people throwing them away. Like beer cans, soda cans, candy wrapping and what more.
Hi Stewart,
Can you give me the addresses of the two shops that sell Nespresso capsules in Amsterdam please? I will be there in a business trip the day after tomorrow and I would like to buy some.
Thank you,
Dana
My company has had a Nespresso machine for around two years now. All the staff loved the coffee but recently there were complaints about the Aluminum capsules health effect. There is a small amount of paint from the capsule which comes off and there must be fractions of metal breaking off when the capsule is punctured and high pressure imposed. I was not satisfied at all with the response when I posed this to Nespresso:
Background
Aluminium is a naturally occurring element. It is the most abundant metallic element found in the earths crust (8%) and naturally present in the food we consume. Plants naturally absorb aluminium and some plant food sources, such as tea, are inherently rich in aluminium
Use of aluminium
Aluminium metal is wide-spread used for processing equipment and packaging of foods (can, tubes) as it provides one of the most efficient barriers to protect food against light, moisture and air.
Possible sources of aluminium in a Nespresso cup of coffee
Roasted and ground coffee:
Like other plants, the coffee tree absorbs a small quantity of aluminium from the soil. The intake of minerals enables plants to avoid self-phytoxicity. This naturally occurring aluminium is found in coffee beans (0.73 – 52mg/kg) and hence in roasted & ground coffee, ie.: measured average content is around 8 mg/kg. A capsule of Nespresso contains 5 or 6 grams of coffee and about 0.035 and 0.042 mg of aluminium respectively.
Our blends of coffee are 100% pure and do not contain any additives that night contribute to aluminium content.
Alumimun capsule (body and lid/membrane)
Aluminium packaging ensures the coffee freshness, and the preservation of all aromas for the best in-cup quality through an excellent barrier to moisture and air. Moreover aluminium can be recycled. The aluminium body and membrane are coated with a layer of food grade lacquer, avoiding migration of aluminium in the roasted & ground coffee contained in the capsules
Pieces of aluminium from capsule lid/membrane
This may accidentally happen during the coffee extraction with water under pressure. The metallic form of aluminium is not absorbed by the human body.
Water
Water can contain aluminium at a maximum level of 0.2 mg/l. The amount of aluminium due to water can theoretically range from 0.008 mg per cup of 40 ml to 0.022 per cup of 110 ml
Daily Intake of aluminium
The daily intake from food and beverages, as main contributors, is estimated to an average value of 8 mg/day (Food Safety Brief – July 2006). The contribution from drinking water is usually less than 5% of the total daily intake. Migration from processing equipment, packaging and cookware is low and therefore has only a modest contribution to the daily intake.
Contribution of Nespresso cup to the daily intake of aluminium
The consumption of Nespresso cups (0.005 mg per cup) has a totally negligible contribution to the normal daily intake of aluminium (average of 8 mg), ie: one cup of Nespresso represents about 0.06% of the daily intake of aluminium.
This value can be compared to the daily consumption of the following food and beverages:
125g of bread = 0.55mg of aluminium (100 cups of Nespresso*) and 330 ml of fruit juices = 0.13 mg of aluminium (25 cups of Nespresso*)
* Considering there is a low aluminium content in the water
Refererences:
Food Safety Brief – July 2006 – CT-NRC/QS
Guideline for Drinking Water Quality – 2004 – WHO
Nestle Nespresso SA report – August 2002 – JJS
Nestle Nespresso SA report – March 1999 – Alex Kollep
Study on quantification of aluminium present in Nespresso roasted & round coffee re-used for Nescafe. – August 2003 – NRC report RDOR – 60001
There’s an alternative to the Nespresso pod… but it’s not quite so good 😦
for gods sake get a life, who cares. i dont. i just want my coffee. i bet you have plenty of things you use that are not recyclable. take your computer for example. your car has lots of non biodegradable bits on it. clothing, makeup………..the list goes on.
Yep it is true that much of what we all do is not good for the environment but I do care and I for one wont support a silly coffee fad where there are perfectly good alternatives…..but I do love good coffee!
Cheers ThursdaysGirl
I was told by nespresso in Brussels that they recycle the pods if you bring them back. Is it true?
They may not be biodegradable, but I actually reuse the pods and put my own coffee in them. You can reuse them 2/3 times before they become ruined.
http://www.metacafe.com/watch/1052623/coffee_maker_hack/
I agree that Nespresso’s machines are not really good. I suggest to purchase other brand of coffee machines out there.
Is Coke not a refreshing beverage just because it comes in aluminum cans? Is my Macbook Pro not a great computer just because it’s made of aluminum? Keurig uses aluminum AND plastic, which can only be down-cycled (not recycled) so many times before it’s useless. Not to mention stage 6 down-cycled plastic contains estrogen, which is released when it’s heated to high temperatures. I think Nespresso is a cult fad but so was the iPod, also aluminum by the way. Besides the caffeine itself is not exactly healthy for you or the coffee itself for the environment. In the wise words of George Carlin about health: “take a @#*!in’ chance!”
You are right about the environment footprint that they are leaving!
But, thinking in pure “barista” terms, they are “not so good” since, metal and coffee don’t get on so well.
I recall my grandma -the best coffee aficionado I’ve ever seen-, would always tell me “Using a metallic spoon with the coffee or a metallic grinder will change the flavour”.
Thus, at my home we’ll always used wood-made spoons and grinders for the coffee.
Then, Nespresso has a metallic -aluminum- pod… so, this will make coffee not be all the perfect it could be.
On the other hand you’re limited to what Nestlé wants -or even worst, want’s not- to brew.
So, while they don’t prove me that they are the best thing ever, I’ll keep on buying my 100% Organic Coffee in El Mangnífico -www.cafeselmagnifico.com, in Barcelona, Catalunya, Spain-, and doing it in the old fashioned way -i.e.: with my Italian espresso and cappuccino maker- 🙂
Great post by the way!