Ecoffee Cup travel mug | Back to uni essential!

A travel mug is undoubtedly a back-to-uni essential, but I commute to campus which makes it even more important! I was given a free travel mug at Freshers’ Fair last year; it was okay, but not amazing. It did the job, but the lid didn’t seal shut so there were multiple times I ran for the train and spilt half of my drink. I decided that since second year is where you get serious (and need three times more coffee), I’d allow myself to buy a new one.

I found this cup in Siesta, Canterbury’s fair trade shop, but they also sell it in some Oxfam shops. The cup is made from biodegradable bamboo fibre and corn starch, and the lid is made from recyclable silicone. It’s also really light, and looks pretty funky too. That pretty much ticks off everything important in my books! It’s also dishwasher safe for those of you who live a fancier lifestyle than me.

I’m not sure yet how it will withstand being throw into a backpack for 12 consecutive weeks as it seems a little thin, but I have good feelings. I’ve tested it and it keeps my drinks warm without burning my hands, and the cover does a good enough job of preventing spillage. The most important thing is that I can prevent withdrawal from the slight coffee addiction I developed during my Spring term last year. I had a lot of essays, okay? Don’t judge!

It’s really important to avoid disposable coffee cups – they’re often not recyclable, which means that around 100 billion end up in landfill every year. Add to that how many resources they take to make and you’ve got a mess worse than me before my daily dose of caffeine! Getting a reusable cup is such an easy way to cut down your waste and so help the environment. If you don’t want a groovy one like this or need a bit more protection from spillage, I’d highly recommend getting a stainless steel flask instead.

Who else swears by the reusable coffee cup? I’d love to know down in the comments! Thank you for reading, I hope you have a wonderful day!

- Bethan