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Stay in the loop with responsible waste education, industry news and cafes doing great things in this space!
How To Run A Cafe Without Disposable Cups
We’ve all seen the data showing why disposable coffee cups are a major source of avoidable waste, but cafes making the switch to only using reusable cups are still making a bold move that requires careful planning. Cafés can reduce or completely avoid using single-use...
The 8 Most Sustainable Coffee Cups in Australia in 2026
So you've decided to give disposable coffee cups the flick. With so many brands of reusable coffee cups available, each with different features, it might seem tricky to know which are the most sustainable coffee cups. The big question is, are some brands more...
Too Good To Go in Australia: How One App is Helping Save Food and the Planet
The launch of Too Good To Go in Australia might just be what our Responsible Cafes were waiting for! According to UNEP, about 1.05 billion tonnes of perfectly good food was wasted in 2022. 60% happened at the household level, with food services responsible for 28% and...
The Best Reusable Coffee Bean Bag for Coffee Enthusiasts
At Responsible Cafes, we’re all about finding great alternatives to single-use plastics. Today, we’re focusing on one of the most wasteful packaging items sold in coffee shops worldwide: the coffee bean bag. Why? Because in Australia, 55,000 cafés and restaurants use...
Cafes that are killing it: Cafe Nate create CN8 in Roseville
We are back again with another addition to our ‘Cafes That Are Killing It’ series! This week the focus is on Cafe Nate in NSW! Cafe Nate is one of the newest members of the Responsible Cafes family and you have to get to know them! The best way to do that is to pay...
20 Things To Consider When Choosing A Reusable Cup (If You Don’t Have One Already)
Every year, Australians use 1.8 billion single-use hot beverage cups. We want to change that, and it starts with a simple choice: the right reusable cup. But with so many different cups available, which cost anywhere from nothing up to $60, it can be hard to know...
Responsible Cafes joins SIPtember with social enterprise STREAT
siptember: an annual campaign normalising reuse by social enterprise streatEvery year, Australians use an eye-watering 1.8 billion disposable coffee cups. While some are labelled “compostable,” only a tiny amount are actually recycled, repurposed or downcycled. The...
Peels Replaces ShareWaste: A New Chapter in Community Composting
Food waste is still one of the biggest problems we face when it comes to climate change. While many local councils have started tackling this issue from the top down, community composting has quietly grown from the ground up, driven by people who simply care. For...
Coffee Van and Sustainability: Top 3 Mobile Single Use Free Coffee Van Businesses in Australia
Top 3 Mobile Single Use Free Coffee Van Businesses in Australia
Cafes That Are Killing It: Polly Baker Traralgon, a 4Rs circular café
We are back again with another addition to our ‘Cafes That Are Killing It’ series! This week the focus is on Polly Baker in regional VIC! Polly Baker Traralgon is a Gold Bean Responsible Café that has circular economy at the heart of its operations. Located in the...
How To Make Sustainable Coffee Mug Choices in 2025 (And Beyond)
At Responsible Cafes, we're all about making a positive impact, one cup at a time. This blog explores sustainability ideas you could consider when you’re choosing coffee mugs and cups. Many of us are already using our own reusable coffee mug or cup, which reduces...
Reusable Cups and Kicking Disposables: Lessons from Cafe Owners in 2025
When it comes to reusable cups VS single-use coffee cups, most people think they’re making the “sustainable” choice by opting for compostable. But as cafe owners Tenzin and Fiona shared in a recent panel organised by Zero Waste Victoria, the reality is a lot more...
The 5 Secrets About Reusable Cups Successful Cafes Don’t Want You To Know
Shhh! Don't tell, but there are a few secrets successful cafes are keeping under wraps about reusable cups. In Australia where sustainability is becoming a bigger priority than ever, these secrets could be the key to attracting new customers and boosting your bottom...
Can Tetra Paks Be Recycled in Australia?
Australia has long been a champion of environmental initiatives, but one area where we have ongoing struggles is recycling and more specifically, the recycling of tetra paks – those much loved, super useful, multi-layered cartons used for beverages like milk and juice...
Are Plastic Milk Bottles Recyclable?
Most people and cafes buy dairy milk in plastic bottles, and some alternative milks and many juices use them too - but are plastic milk bottles recyclable? Plastic milk bottles are made from a rigid form of a plastic called HDPE, High Density Polyethelene. It is very...
The National Sword Policy: How Australia Lost Its Recycling
The National Sword PolicyThe National Sword policy, introduced by China in 2018, marked a turning point for global recycling efforts. For decades, China had been the world's largest importer of recyclable materials, processing a significant share of waste paper,...
Single-Use Plastic Bans in 2025: SA & WA
September is here and that means there are new single-use plastic bans! If you want to find out what that means for your cafe, we’ve summarised everything you need to know about the bans. If you do not comply, fines cost up to $5000 per offence in WA, and up to...
How To Avoid Single Use Plastic In Cafes 2025
There is nothing worse than sitting to dine in and having a takeaway cup delivered to your table. Whether it’s plastic lined paper, compostable, or totally plastic for iced drinks, if you were trying to avoid single use plastic, it can leave a bitter taste before...
Spilling the Beans with bRU Coffee Bondi
Intro-brew-sing… bRU Coffee Bondi! If you’ve been to Bondi recently, you may have spied a bustling hole in the wall, with surfers, families and four-legged friends alike gathered around doing the Saturday quiz together. Chances are you’ve stumbled upon one of our...
Can Reusable Water Bottles Be Recycled in Australia in 2025?
Whether it’s from a work conference, sporting event, or o-week at uni, most of us have a reusable water bottle of some kind sitting untouched in the back of our kitchen cupboards. One spring clean later and you’re left with an assortment of reusable remnants that,...
Why Haven’t You Heard Of PFAS?
The intimate relationship you’re in with highly persistent and dangerous ‘forever chemicals’If you’re at all interested in climate change, plastic pollution, or general sustainability, I’m sure you watched ABC's War On Waste 3, which aired earlier this year. One of...
Are Takeaway Coffee Cups Recyclable?
We understand better than most just how important your morning coffee is. Whether you’re making it at home or picking it up on the way to work (or both), we would never deny Australians their daily caffeine. Our problem is that we fundamentally disagree that our...
Are Takeaway Coffee Cup Lids Recyclable?
Have you ever stood in front of a bin, takeaway coffee cup in hand, and wondered… now what? Do I separate the lid from the cup? Recycle the whole thing and hope for the best? What to do with your takeaway coffee cup lid is a question we receive quite a lot, so...
Join the BYOFriday Campaign with War on Waste!
In collaboration with the ABC and the new season of War on Waste, our nationwide BYO Friday campaign kicked off alongside Plastic Free July with the aim of reducing waste and promoting the habit of reuse!
Are home compostable coffee cups more expensive?
In today’s eco-conscious world, sustainable packaging is becoming an increasingly important factor in our purchasing decisions. For both businesses and consumers wanting to offer or use a disposable option for takeaway coffee, one alternative to plastic and bioplastic...
NEW Approved by RC Product: Certified Fully Home Compostable Coffee Cups + Lids
read on because we got a cheeky discount for you!We have some exciting news to share! Our General Manager, Marion, has been spearheading the development of interim solutions for cafes that are unable to offer a full reusable experience (yet!). As we work towards our...
Telstra Best of Business Awards: RC Receives Finalist Award for Promoting Sustainability
20,879 nominations and 246 Australia-wide finalists including 60 in South Australia. And Responsible Cafes was one of them! We are absolutely thrilled to announce that Responsible Cafes was named as a Finalist in the Telstra Best of Business Awards in the Promoting...
Don’t Forget! Victoria Introduces New Single-Use Plastic Bans
Mark it in your calendars: 1st of February 2023. Victoria will be one of the last states in the country to introduce their new single-use plastic bans. Woohoo! What Items Are Banned? The newest single-use plastic bans in Victoria will come into effect from February...
We’re Shaping a Better Future: RC Awarded Finalists in the Aus and NZ Circle Awards 2022!
To be named amongst some of the strongest movements in Australia and New Zealand in the sustainability sector is such an honour. We are very proud to announce we were named Finalists in the Circle Awards 2022! The Circle Awards ‘recognise the local businesses,...
How To Be A Responsible University at the Australian Circular Economy Conference
QS have just released their first ever global university rankings based on social and environmental sustainability- just in time from our discussion on Responsible Universities at the Australian Circular Economy Conference! The new global sustainable universities...
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