New Coffee Bags

Rooted in Stumptown’s Values of Relentless Quality and Purposeful Growth, we are launching a new coffee bag that will protect the quality of our coffee while reducing the environmental impact of our packaging. 

Q: What is happening? 

A: Stumptown is launching a new coffee bag to replace our current form factor. 

Q: Why are we excited about this new bag? 

A: Four Main Reasons

• Lighter weight reduces the total environmental footprint. 
• Incorporates at least 30% post-consumer recycled (PCR) content. 
• Recyclable through fee-based third party collection, i.e Ridwell, Green Century. 
• Lower oxygen permeability, which protects freshness.

Q: Why does a lighter bag matter? 

A: Reducing the overall weight of the package reduces demand for materials and thereby the environmental footprint – which we did by more than 12% when all bag sizes are considered.

Q: Why does post-consumer recycled content matter? 

A: PCR materials are manufactured with plastic that has already been used at least once in packaging. This reduces the environmental footprint, creates a market for recycled plastic, and closes the recycling loop. Our new packaging is made with a minimum of 30% post-consumer recycled content.

Q: How is the new bag able to be recycled? 

A: While many flexible packaging materials are promoted as recyclable, the materials are not easily recyclable in most municipalities and are required to go into a dedicated polyethylene stream, to a drop-off collection site. Our new bag is made from recycled content but is not curbside recyclable. There are a limited number of recyclers like Ridwell that do offer multi-layer plastic bag recycling – including non-compostable coffee bags like ours. Check with your nearby recycling facilities to learn more, and see if Ridwell is available in your community. 

Q: Why does lower oxygen permeability matter? 

A: Reducing the ability of oxygen to pass through coffee packaging protects coffee quality by preserving its freshness and flavor. Oxygen exposure accelerates the oxidation of lipids and aromatic compounds, leading to stale or rancid flavors. Limiting oxygen exposure slows the degradation of these compounds, allowing the coffee to retain its complex aromas and taste profile for a longer period. 

Q: The bags still have virgin plastic. Why do we continue to use it? 

A: Don’t get us wrong, we are not stoked about the many problems with plastic and its impacts on our planet. Plastic has many benefits for food and beverage products, especially when they are being shipped and stored on shelves: plastic is lightweight, holds up under variable temperatures, and protects quality. This is why we are moving towards Post Consumer Recycled (PCR) plastic wherever possible; as we did last year when we moved to PCR plastic cups in cafes. These decisions support markets for post-consumer plastic, and keep it out of the landfill.  It’s not a perfect solution, but it’s a step in the right direction. 

Q: Is our current (old) bag recyclable? It looks like paper.

A: Stumptown’s current (old) bag was made of multiple layers of plastic with a Natural Kraft paper outer layer. This combination made the bag NOT biodegradable, NOT recyclable and NOT compostable in any way.

Q: Who can I contact if I have more questions?

A: Email info@stumptowncoffee.com and we’ll get you connected to the right person