A new coffee pod recycling trial has begun in Leeds, allowing residents to recycle used pods at selected household waste recycling centres across the city.
Leeds City Council has partnered with Podback, a not-for-profit coffee pod recycling service, to introduce dedicated recycling points at three sites. The trial is operating at the household waste recycling centres in Kirkstall, Wetherby and Yeadon.
Each participating centre has been fitted with two Podback containers. One is designated for aluminium coffee pods and the other for plastic pods. Coffee, tea and hot chocolate pods from participating brands can be recycled through the scheme. A full list of eligible brands is available on the Podback website.
Residents are asked to place used pods into the containers loose and intact. The pods will then be collected and transported to specialist Podback facilities in the UK for recycling. Any remaining coffee grounds or residues left inside the pods will be processed locally in Yorkshire through anaerobic digestion, producing renewable energy in the form of biogas as well as a soil improver.
Councillor Mohammed Rafique, Leeds City Council’s executive member for climate, energy, environment and green space, said: “We are really excited to start the new year by working with Podback to recycle coffee pods at our household waste recycling centres. The timing is ideal, as people may have received a coffee-maker as a gift for Christmas so now they can recycle the pods easily and help the environment at the same time. We are very pleased to be offering this service to people in Leeds and working with Podback on this trial.”
Rick Hindley, executive director of Podback, said: “It’s great to be able to expand the Podback service by trialling it at three of Leeds City Council’s recycling centres. We want to make coffee pod recycling as easy as possible, and this new service enables residents to drop off pods when convenient, alongside other recyclables, and helping to reduce waste and increase recycling.”
The council has advised that compostable pods cannot be recycled through the Podback containers or brown garden waste bins. Instead, these should be placed in a home composting bin.
Residents can find additional pod drop-off locations by using Podback’s online recycling tracker, which allows users to search by postcode and pod type. Further information about the scheme, including details on how the recycling process works, is available through Podback’s website and online video resources.
