Cup^®Movement

Almost 500 million single-use cups are used in Scotland each year.

95 million single-use cups are used in the greater Glasgow area each year. But, only 4% of these are recycled.

Something needs to change.

Get involved below

In collaboration with

Our Cup Movement campaign was active from January 2019 until March 2020.

You can read the highlights in our Phase 1 Report on Cup Movement in Glasgow.

If you're interested in reducing cup waste, either now or in the future, please contact us for an update.

Our single-use cup problem

Almost 500 million single-use cups are used in Scotland each year: an unimaginable number of cups that we are throwing away. And, if only 4% of these are currently recycled, what happens to the remaining 96%? Most go to landfill and far too many just end up littering our beautiful country.

We think something needs to change and have created Cup Movement^® to tackle this problem.

With an estimated 95 million single-use cups bought in the greater Glasgow area each year, the city is the perfect place for us to begin.

What is Cup Movement^®?

Cup Movement is an innovative city-wide collaboration that will transform Glasgow’s relationship with single-use cups.

We are working across the board, with those who buy, sell and use cups, to find solutions that work.

Cup Movement will:

Raise awareness, share information and help people to make more sustainable cup choices.

Work together with key stakeholders to trial different approaches for reducing cup waste

Provide robust evidence to inform policy and practice.

Create a successful model which we can replicate in other cities.

Contribute to the Scottish Government's circular economy ambitions.

Let’s reduce cup waste

In order to reduce cup waste, we are focusing on:

Ensuring that far fewer cups are littered
Increasing cup recycling rates, including the development of a cup waste collection and recycling service
Promoting reuse

Click on the sections below to learn more: