Comparative LCA & Eco-Efficiency Analysis of 4 Types of Drinking Cups

UPDATE: Since this study was completed in February 2006, we at NatureWorks have improved the production process for Ingeo. This results in less greenhouse gases and fossil energy use that is now more closely aligned with the PLA Future scenario reflected in the study below.

• Introduction
• Definitions
• Results
• Parameters

In order to outline a well-founded waste management policy for the use of drinking cups at events, OVAM, the Public Waste Agency for the Flemish Region in Belgium, commissioned VITO, the Flemish Institute for Technological Research, to study the current environmental impacts and the costs related to existing systems for drinking cups on small-scale indoor and large-scale outdoor events in Flanders, Belgium.

The two-phased study consists of a comparative life cycle analysis (LCA) comparing the environmental impacts of four existing cup systems and an eco-efficiency analysis in which the total life-cycle costs of the different cup systems are inventoried and related to the environmental aspects.

The study compares re-usable polycarbonate (PC) cups with one-way polypropylene (PP), polyethylene (PE)-coated cardboard, and Ingeo (PLA) cups. The basis for the comparison is defined as the recipients needed for serving 100 liter beer or soft drinks at a small-scale indoor event (2000-5000 visitors) or a large-scale outdoor event (>30,000 visitors).

This definition includes the production of the cups, the consumption phase (at the event) and the processing of the waste. The four cup systems were compared in four basic scenarios, along with a sensitivity analysis to examine the trip rate in the case of reusable PC cups, as well as the PLA Future scenario.

Some Definitions

• PLA5: Equivalent to the current Ingeo 2005 scenario in our eco-profile.
• PLA Future: Includes the new process technology reflected in Ingeo 2009 CIT, but also includes a few other assumptions. Please see the full report for more details.
• Relative Contribution %: Cups with the highest contribution to a particular environmental effect (fossil fuel use, etc) are indicated with a 100% bar. Cups with lower environmental contributions are expressed as a % of the highest contribution value.

Even without including our new eco-profile improvements, Ingeo has a smaller impact than a traditional plastic cup made in polypropylene at both the large & small events. Once the new profile is incorporated (similar to PLA Future), Ingeo uses less fossil fuels & creates fewer greenhouse gas emissions than all the other cup scenarios.

Full reports:

 Comparative LCA of 4 types of drinking cups used at events

 Eco-efficiency analysis of 4 types of drinking cups used at events

Additional summaries:

 Executive summary of both the comparative LCA and eco-efficiency analysis

 Summary presentation of both the comparative LCA and eco-efficiency analysis

Selection of LCA settings for the four basic scenarios and the next generation of PLA.

Parameter	PC Basic	PP Basic	PE-coated Cardboard	PLA5 Basic (Ingeo 2005)	PLA Future
Cup weight (g)	45	5	7.7	6.5	5.5
Pellet Production Data	PlasticsEurope	PlasticsEurope	PlasticsEurope	NatureWorks per May 2005	NatureWorks per May 2005
EOL Small Scale	100% incineration	100% incineration	100% incineration	50% incineration 50% composting	50% incineration 50% composting
EOL Large Scale	100% incineration	50% incineration 50% cement kiln	50% incineration 50% cement kiln	50% incineration 50% composting	90% anaerobic 10% incineration
Pellet Production Location	Europe	Europe	Europe	USA	Europe
Number of Trips small scale / large scale	45 / 20	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a