If you need your morning coffee before you start your day, you may have noticed a little something extra on your bill in the past month — a $0.25 charge on disposable cups.

mugshare, a British Columbia-based company, lets you enjoy your morning coffee in a more sustainable and economical way. The business, which lets you ‘rent’ cups from different local cafes and return them at any other participating cafe, is a triple win; you can support local cafes, keep single-use cups out of the trash, and keep some extra cash in your pocket — what’s not to love?

“As plastic pollution continues to grow, cutting back on single-use food items, like polycoated coffee cups, and advancing circular solutions is more critical than ever,” says Melanie Chanona, director and co-founder of mugshare. “Before the COVID-19 pandemic, we were making progress, but lack of clarity around health and safety concerns stalled the momentum, and with added waste from disposable masks and gloves, the plastic crisis has only worsened.”

Each week in Vancouver 2.6 million single-use cups are thrown out, which makes up 22% of the trash on the streets, in landfills, and in our oceans.

mugshare is a social impact program that provides a safe, reusable alternative to single-use cups through a convenient deposit-return system. The born-in-Vancouver business was created by a group of UBC students in 2016 in an effort to shift the norm on single-use waste, without putting the burden of responsibility on individuals. During the pandemic, they joined forces with CUPPY, another mug-sharing pioneer who shared the same values as mugshare, to collaboratively grow the reusable movement in British Columbia.

The quickly-growing list of mugshare partners already includes coffee shops like Giovane Caffè, Di Beppe, and Caffè Super Veloce in downtown Vancouver, select JJ Bean locations, DALINA in Chinatown and Fairview, Chickpea on Main Street, Continental Coffee House on Main Street and Commercial Drive, Boulevard and Doughgirls on UBC campus, and even Globe Cafe and Tapas Bar at Big White Ski Resort near Kelowna.

“We’re building an incredible community of partners and mugsharers in Vancouver and beyond,” says Chanona. “Together, we’re taking a systems change approach to decrease reliance on single-use cups and help address the harm created by linear ‘make-take-waste’ models. We believe reducing barriers to participation is key to making this shift, so we prioritized simplicity and ease of use when designing the program.”

So how can you join the mugshare movement? You can visit a participating cafe and order a drink where you pay a $5 refundable deposit. You can enjoy your drink there or take it with you. Whenever you visit another cafe that’s part of the program, you can return your mug and get reimbursed for your $5 deposit. It’s easy to use and good for the environment. To check out the growing list of partners, visit mugshare’s website.

CURRENT MUGSHARE PARTNERS
Caffè Super Veloce
Chickpea
Continental Coffee House – Commercial Drive
Continental Coffee House – Main Street
DALINA – Chinatown
DALINA – West Broadway
Di Beppe Caffè
Doughgirls
Giovane Caffè
Globe Cafe and Tapas Bar, Big White Ski Resort
JJ Bean – CBC Vancouver Plaza
JJ Bean – UBC
The Boulevard Coffee Roasting Co.