While Air New Zealand has already made the switch from plastic to biodegradable cups both on board and in its lounges, they are constantly looking at and testing even more environmentally friendly options.
Edible coffee cups are used on Air New Zealand flights.
To do this, the airline partnered with New Zealand-based company Twiice, a family-owned business that produces edible plant-based cups. The cups currently used on Air New Zealand flights are vanilla-flavored and can withstand the heat of coffee without melting.
Air New Zealand's Customer Experience Manager Niki Chave says they serve up to 8 million cups of coffee on board each year. And so far, customers who have been offered the Twiice cups have been very receptive to the campaign.
Notably, this isn’t the only move Air New Zealand has made to go greener in the skies. In July 2019, the airline announced that condiments like salad dressing and soy sauce would be served in reusable bowls instead of individual plastic packets. The edible cups are the latest in a series of collaborations between Air New Zealand and Twiice, which could be the start of more collaborations in the future.
Twiice co-founder Jamie Cashmore said the company is working on a line of edible plates that could potentially also be used on Air New Zealand flights.
Solving the plastic waste crisis has become a hot topic across all sectors of the travel industry, not just airlines. The state of California has banned sample-sized shampoos and other toiletries commonly used in hotels, while major corporations like Hyatt and IHG (which owns brands like Holiday Inn and Hotel Indigo) have announced they will do the same across all of their owned and managed chains.
