Last updated on December 12th, 2024
The Biodegradable Products Institute has awarded Smile Beverage Werks’ commercially compostable, K-cup compatible coffee pods its environmental certification.
The BPI Certification is a rigorous, science-driven process. Vetted products are tested to ASTM D6400 and D6868 standards and meet additional restrictions on carcinogens, BPA and fluorinated chemicals like PFAS. The BPI mark enables consumers to identify and trust an item is compostable and can be diverted with food scraps where programs exist.
The pod commercially composts whole, eliminating the messy task of cleaning and separating the pieces to make it recyclable. No rinsing is needed to prep the pods for the recycling bin, aiding water conservation efforts. All excess plastic bagging has also been eliminated without comprising freshness.
The pods have a 12-plus month shelf life. Smile Beverage Werks offers private label opportunities to reduce plastic pollution derived within the coffee pod industry. Plastic pods can sit in landfills for hundreds of years resulting in negative environmental impacts, such as leaked chemicals into watershed, pollution and microplastics in the environment.
“This is a major breakthrough that allows any coffee company with plastic or carbon reduction goals to quickly switch from their plastic pods to a less burdensome, compostable pod, all while obtaining their corporate sustainability goals,” said Frankie Schuster, co-founder of Smile Coffee Werks. “Fortunately, we have associations like BPI that help give the consumer confidence. At Smile Coffee Werks, we’re dedicated to making it easy and convenient to ‘Go Green with a Smile.’ If everyone makes small changes in their consumption and waste habits, we’ll see big environmental changes. We’re all in this together.”
Darien, Connecticut-based Smile Beverage Werks is committed to sustainability in all aspects of its production: It sources beans from only Rainforest Alliance Certified farms; its pods are manufactured in a facility using wind, solar and hydropower; its cartons are made from recycled materials; its supply chain is certified climate neutral by ClimatePartner; and its products are certified USDA Biobased Products and certified commercially compostable by BPI. The pods can be bought online at Walmart, Amazon and smilecoffeewerks.com.
