According to a 2004 litter survey conducted by Nova Scotia’s Department of Environment and Labour, Tim Hortons’ disposable cups are the most common item littering public spaces.
According to the survey, Tim Hortons is a significant contributor to North America’s litter pollution levels. And as the franchise expands, so does the amount of litter resulting from its operation.
In Nova Scotia, Tim Hortons cups accounted for 22 per cent of all identifiable waste. With 2,540 Tim Hortons restaurants in Canada, and another 273 now in the United States, the chain’s litter levels are continuing to rise.
The litter survey prompted a reaction from many environmentalists.
“There’s no [.] reason for Tim Hortons to use coffee cups that can’t be composted or recycled,” said Ronald Colman, executive director of GPI Atlantic, a non-profit group that researches environmental and quality of life issues.
But it wasn’t until two students started to actively campaign for Tim Hortons to reduce their paper waste that the issue gained a large amount of public attention.
Loretta Lau and Jacqueline Leung are both completing a minor in Business Management at McGill University. At the beginning of the semester, they were given an assignment in their social context of business course that allowed their “Taking Action” project to take flight.
“The criteria for our assignment was to research something that we wanted to see change [within the context of the operation of a business],” said Lau.
They then needed to provide methods for bringing about the change, and promote awareness of the issue.
Lau and Leung began their research in late September.
“We first investigated Tim Hortons’ code of conduct,” said Lau.
They did this by examining Tim Hortons’ official website. In the website’s FAQ section, the company answers the question “What is Tim Hortons doing to deal with litter?”
The following answer is given: “At Tim Hortons, we try to be very conscious of the environmental impacts of our packaging and waste materials. We are attempting to deal with the litter issue in a variety of ways.”
This statement is followed by a list of anti-litter guidelines that the franchise follows. However, Lau and Leung discovered that these guidelines aren’t even put into practice at most Tim Hortons locations. The results of their research actually shows that the practices at these locations usually contradict every guideline stated by the franchise on its website.
It is first stated on the website that Tim Hortons is always exploring alternative packaging materials, particularly those that are recyclable or biodegradable. However, after a conversation in early October with Greg Skinner, Tim Hortons manager of corporate affairs, Leung was surprised to find out that no such research exists. At present, Tim Hortons paper cups aren’t recyclable because they contain a plastic liner and are varnished in wax. Lau and Leung also discovered that the company is currently doing nothing to change the composition of the paper cups. They suggest that, if the company were to make the change, it would have an immediate, positive effect on the environment.
The Tim Hortons chain also presents itself as one of the few, if not only coffee chain, to have its quick serve restaurants offer reusable china mugs to dine-in customers.
“This helps reduce paper waste at the store level,” the website sates.
However, through their observations over a four-day period at the Tim Hortons on the corner of Sherbrooke and University St., Lau and Leung found that many paper cups were used needlessly, either because dine-in customers weren’t given china mugs, or because disposable cups were being used for “double-cupping” hot drinks.
“Around 50 cups were unnecessarily wasted every hour,” said Lau.
Another guideline the franchise is supposed to promote in all of its restaurants is the use of reusable mugs by customers through an incentive program. The incentive for customers to purchase a Tim Hortons travel mug is that customers pay less for coffee when using it.
Nevertheless, the discount is a mere five cents in Quebec and ten cents in the rest of Canada. In addition to this, an online survey conducted by Lau and Leung, showed that 85 per cent of people aren’t even aware that these incentives exist.
In order for their “Taking Action” project to create more of an impact, Lau and Leung started a petition November 13. The petition asks Tim Hortons to put more effort in taking care of the environment by reducing its paper waste, specifically through the promotion and use of travel mugs and ensuring that every dine-in customer is given a china mug for hot drinks.
To date, there are 235 signatures, but Lau and Leung remain hopeful that their goal of 10,000 signatures will eventually be reached.
“I’m not sure how long it will take but I’m not skeptical about people’s reactions. From the feedback I got, people are [becoming] aware of the seriousness of the situation,” said Lau.
Once the petition is complete, Lau and Leung will be sending it along with a formal letter to Tim Hortons’ head office in Ontario.
To sign the petition or for more information, visit www.thepetitionsite.com/takeaction/232854687.
