AEG introduces reusable cup system to German venues

The German arm of sports and entertainment company AEG has detailed plans to introduce a self-operated reusable cup system at its venues across the country.

Hamburg’s 16,000-capacity Barclays Arena and the 17,000-capacity Mercedes-Benz Arena in Berlin will be among the venues to take part in the scheme, which will launch in January.

Visitors to the venues will drink from recycled Ökocup cups, which will be washed and reused on-site to eliminate emissions that would normally be generated by transporting them to an external washing point.

The cups will be mostly made of recycled plastic and are 100% reprocessed at the end of their lifespan. The system will replace the biodegradable PLA disposable cups that are currently used for drinks across AEG Germany venues.

AEG Germany hopes to eliminate a total of 90 tonnes of waste each year by adopting the new system. The company has commissioned Meiko, which specialises in flushing technology, to install flushing systems that are capable of cleaning up to 5,300 cups an hour.

Uwe Frommhold, vice-president and chief operating officer at AEG Germany, said: “For us, the introduction of the reusable cup system with an in-house cup rinsing line is a decisive step in our efforts to achieve more sustainability in the operation of our venues.

“Because regardless of how environmentally friendly the disposal of our cups has been carried out so far, it is simply better not to produce any waste in the first place. By purchasing an in-house rinsing line, we avoid transport-related emissions and solve the logistical challenges that previously prevented us from using a reusable system with external cup rinsing.”