If you are a staunch lover of the environment, you probably already own a favorite designer reusable coffee cup. You feel ill at ease ordering your spiced latte, hot cocoa, or black Americano in a disposable container with a plastic lid. It is just kinder to Mother Earth to bring your cup because you don’t want to be a part of the problem that litters up landfills with plastic that takes forever to biodegrade.

However, with the recent coronavirus pandemic, you can’t help but wonder if your reusable cup is safe. After all, a disposable variant assures you get a new cup each time, which means you eliminate contact. People assume this protects you and the barista because it keeps you from spreading the contagion.

It is time to rethink this decision before you revert to those harmful disposables. Below are the reasons why a reusable cup still makes sense post-pandemic. This eco-friendly cup is always the best choice, no matter what.

No Proven Benefit to Choosing Disposable

An infectious disease specialist shared no proven benefit to choosing disposable cups over your favorite designer reusable coffee cup. The virus can survive on plastic and stainless steel surfaces for up to 7 hours in their lab experiments. That being said, even if the virus lives up to those three days, it is only most likely to be infectious in the first few hours. As a person who owns the cup, your risk is less.

If you keep the cup clean, there is no point in reverting to disposable cups because they offer the same risk exposure. Keeping your reusable cups is the best alternative if you truly want to create a better new normal with more beautiful earth.

Just Make Sure the Cup is Squeaky Clean

Post-pandemic or not, you have to be conscious about staying away from people when you’re sick. You also have to be vigilant about using a very clean cup. People keep reminding everyone about hand hygiene to minimize the spread of the disease. A better approach is overall hygiene from surfaces to your reusable cup. Never take a dirty cup to the cafe – that’s dangerous and insulting to the barista.

You must be conscious of doing the right thing at all times. Your reusable coffee cup will always be safe if you wash it religiously with antimicrobial soap and hot water to kill all forms of pathogens. In this scenario, trust is your social contract and responsibility. As long as you are committed to doing the right thing, it is safe to use these cups.

Putting New Systems in Place

To ensure your protection, you must patronize businesses that work hard to protect the environment and minimize waste. When they possess this ethical level, you can rest assured knowing they will do everything possible to protect you, the consumer. Some cafes have developed systems with zero contact to manage risks when accepting reusable cups.

The contactless method means only you can touch your cup! The barista concocts

the drink in sanitized metal containers and carefully pours it into your container. Again, they will not touch your cup. When it comes to saving the planet, there will always be a solution and a happy medium to keep everyone at ease.