According to a new study, coffee pods may be more environmentally friendly than filter coffee.
But is this really true?
Some experts and coffee enthusiasts questioned whether pods are actually good for the environment, especially given the waste that coffee capsules are notorious for producing.
However, some scholars argued that, while it is important to consider how capsules are disposed of, the majority of greenhouse gas emissions occur during the growing process.
So, reducing how much coffee you use, even if it means using a coffee pod, can help to reduce your coffee habit's emissions.
Are coffee pods really eco-friendly?
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Luciano Rodrigues Viana, one of the researchers behind the new study and a doctoral student in environmental sciences at the University of Quebec at Chicoutimi, stated, "It hurts to know that we create so much waste."
However, giving up coffee capsules "would make no contribution to reducing greenhouse gas emissions" even if there were none in existence tomorrow, as per The Guardian.
An analysis that looked at the emissions of greenhouse gases that are associated with making a cup of coffee in four different ways was published last month by a group of researchers from the University of Quebec at Chicoutimi.
Using a filter, single-serving capsule, instant coffee, or a French press.
Many readers were surprised by what they found.
Despite the aluminum or plastic waste that users are left with, a traditional filter coffee machine can sometimes produce 1.5 times as many emissions as a coffee pod.
This is because, according to the authors of the article, "coffee capsules avoid the overuse of coffee and water" by precisely measuring the right amount of ingredients.
If they are left to measure on their own, many coffee drinkers use twice as much water and 20% more coffee to make a cup of filtered coffee than is actually required.
The study also found that manufacturing and discarding coffee capsules produces more greenhouse gases than growing that much additional coffee.
In Brazil, producing 11 grams of Arabica coffee-the amount that can be saved by using a coffee pod-emits approximately 59 grams of CO2 equivalent, which is approximately twice as much as the 27 grams of CO2 equivalent that are produced and disposed of when using those same pods.
Viana asserted that "using double the amount of coffee to make a filter coffee is not a problem" despite our intuitive belief that "pods are obviously worse for the environment because we use them and throw them in the waste."
However, the labor involved in producing coffee beans actually causes "much more pollution."
The fact that customers don't see it is the difference.
Regardless of how you prepare your coffee, the most greenhouse gas-emitting phase of the coffee lifecycle is the production of coffee beans, which accounts for anywhere from 40% to 80% of the total emissions of coffee.
This is because the agricultural sector uses intensive irrigation, fertilizers, and pesticides to increase the yield of coffee plants, which also contributes to a significant amount of deforestation in coffee-growing nations.
Viana anticipates that this year, he and his colleagues will publish a paper on the same topic that has been reviewed by other researchers.
However, the outcomes are not novel; a similar research was carried out in 2017 by an engineering professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and similar findings were published in 2007 by Swiss researchers.
Even though the majority of researchers agree that coffee pods produce fewer emissions than filter coffee, this does not mean that there aren't other, more eco-friendly ways to make coffee, or that the effects of coffee pods are the same in every city or country.
The best way to reduce the carbon footprint of traditional, brewed, and soluble coffees at the consumer level is to avoid wasting coffee and water, in addition to reducing coffee consumption, as per The Conversation.
Capsules help people avoid drinking too much water and coffee.
However, consumers may double their coffee consumption due to the convenience of capsule coffee makers, negating this environmental benefit.
To avoid having their capsules sent to a landfill rather than a recycling facility, consumers should also be aware of the capsule recycling options available in their city.
Better yet, they should switch to reusable capsules.
Coffee is not an exception to the need to modify one's diet in order to reduce one's contribution to climate change.
Part of the solution is to reduce your coffee consumption and select a method of preparation that releases fewer greenhouse gases.
However, the actions taken by coffee suppliers and producers account for more than half of coffee's carbon footprint.
They must take action to lessen the negative effects of coffee production on society and the environment.
