This article was co-authored by wikiHow staff writer, Eric McClure. Eric McClure is an editing fellow at wikiHow where he has been editing, researching, and creating content since 2019. A former educator and poet, his work has appeared in Carcinogenic Poetry, Shot Glass Journal, Prairie Margins, and The Rusty Nail. His digital chapbook, The Internet, was also published in TL;DR Magazine. He was the winner of the Paul Carroll award for outstanding achievement in creative writing in 2014, and he was a featured reader at the Poetry Foundation’s Open Door Reading Series in 2015. Eric holds a BA in English from the University of Illinois at Chicago, and an MEd in secondary education from DePaul University.
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Nespresso machines are convenient and easy to use. Unfortunately, you can’t throw your used pods in with your regular recycling—they’re too small for most recycling machines and they’re made out of a unique plastic and aluminum that most recycling plants can’t process. Luckily, Nespresso offers several free and easy to use methods to responsibly dispose of their products. You can take the used pods to a collection point in a special Nespresso bag, or hand the bag to a delivery driver the next time they bring you a shipment. You can also take your pods to a Nespresso boutique or UPS shop. Keep in mind, you can actually reuse Nespresso pods 2-3 times before you recycle them.
Steps
Taking Your Pods to a Collection Point
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1Order a Nespresso recycling bag with your next shipment. Before purchasing pods online, add a recycling bag to your cart. They are free and you can order 1-2 bags with any online order. The next time your order arrives, it will include a special bag designed to store the pods after you use them.[1]
- If you pick up your Nespresso pods from a boutique, they will have the recycling bags available for free. You cannot get them from a big-box retailer though.
Warning: You cannot take your pods to a collection point in anything other than a special Nespresso recycling bag. They will not accept them since the recycling bags are recycled along with the pods.
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2Find a nearby collection point by using Nespresso’s recycling map. Search for collection points in your area by visiting https://www.nespresso.com/us/en/how-to-recycle-coffee-capsules. Enter your address to view a map of nearby collection points. There are Nespresso collection points in most countries that sell Nespresso products. Locate a collection point that is convenient for you.[2]
- A lot of collection points are in or near Nespresso retailers. This will make it easy to drop them off the next time you go to pick up some pods.
- You can also use the collection point search engine in the Nespresso app for Android or iOS.
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3Fill your bag with used pods and close it when it’s full. Keep the bag near your Nespresso machine and toss the used pods in every time you make espresso. The bag can hold 200 original-sized capsules or 100 VerturoLine capsules. Once filled, seal it at the top by pressing the plastic tabs together and folding it over at the top.[3]
- There is only one size of recycling bag.
- You can include the aluminum tabs that peel off the top of the pods.
- Do not overfill your bag or it may not fit in the collection container.
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4Place your pods in the container or drop them off at the customer service desk. Take your used pods to the collection point in the recycling bag. Some of the collection points are public bins that are sitting out in the lobby or entryway of a store. Others are held behind a customer service desk to ensure that no foreign objects end up in the Nespresso recycling container. Drop your bag in the container or leave it with a customer service clerk to recycle your pods.[4]
- The collection points are periodically collected by a Nespresso pickup service and taken to a special plant to be recycled.
Dropping Nespresso Pods at a Boutique or UPS Store
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1Locate a nearby UPS or Nespresso store. Use an online search engine to find a nearby UPS store or Nespresso boutique. You can take your used pods to most Nespresso stores and UPS shipping centers to have them shipped to a recycling plant.[5]
- You can find a UPS store online at https://www.theupsstore.com/tools/find-a-store.
- You can find a Nespresso boutique online by visiting https://www.nespresso.com/us/en/storeLocator#map-intro.
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2Call a UPS or Nespresso store to find out if and how they collect pods. Some UPS stores may not have the proper equipment for storing and shipping Nespresso pods and some retailers may not participate in the Nespresso recycling program. Call ahead to see if a store participates in the recycling program and ask them how you should package your pods.[6]
- This is a different service than the Nespresso collection point program. The collection points require the pods to be placed in the Nespresso recycling bags. While some of the boutiques and UPS stores may require the same bag, others will not.
Tip: Nespresso boutiques refer to company stores or shops that have a special distribution agreement with Nespresso.
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3Take your used pods to the location in the container they specified. Bring your pods with you the next time you’re going to a Nespresso shop or have some outgoing mail that you need to ship. You can use the Nespresso recycling bag if you want to ensure that the store will take them.[7]
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4Drop your used pods off with an employee to get them recycled. Let the clerk behind the counter know that you have some pods to recycle. They will either accept your pods and sort them on their own or ask you to place them in a special delivery container. The pods will be shipped to Nespresso for recycling.[8]
- There is no charge for this service.
Returning Used Pods to the Delivery Driver
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1Order a Nespresso recycling bag with your next order. You can order a special recycling bag for free the next time that you place an online order for coffee. As you go through your pods, place the used units in the special recycling bag.[9]
Tip: You can get the bag for free from a Nespresso boutique if you happened to be picking pods up in the store.
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2Place another order for Nespresso pods and a recycling bag when you’re running low. Once you need to place another order, purchase a second recycling bag. This will make it easy to continue the recycling pickup process the next time that you get your coffee.[10]
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3Give your recycling bag to the delivery driver when he shows up. Wait for the delivery driver to bring you your order. Once they arrive, tell them that you have a Nespresso bag filled with used pods. The delivery driver will take your bag and bring it back to the shipment center on their truck.[11]
- There is no additional charge for giving your delivery driver a recycling bag to take back with them.
- Continue ordering recycling bags every time you buy pods to repeat this process indefinitely.
Reusing Your Pods
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1Remove the cap and clean a used pod by rinsing it in cold water. You can reuse your pods 2-3 times after the first time that you’ve used them. To start, rip the aluminum foil cap off the pod and set it aside for later recycling. Tap the pod on the rim of a garbage can to remove most of the grounds. Place the pod in the sink and run it under cold water to remove residue and hard-to-remove grounds.[12]
- After 2-3 uses, a reused pod will start to lose its shape and won’t be a viable option.
- Dry your pod with a paper towel or cloth.
Warning: You may notice that espresso made with reused pods tastes a little weaker than it normally would. This is normal, and nothing to worry about.
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2Use scissors to cut a circular cover out of aluminum foil. Pull out a short length of aluminum foil. Place it over your pod and use scissors to cut around it. Leave an extra 1–3 inches (2.5–7.6 cm) of aluminum foil hanging on each side of your pod. You don’t have to compact the coffee if you don’t want a strong cup.[13]
- It may be easier for you to cut a square of aluminum foil and then trim the edges off to make it circular.
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3Fill your pod with grounds and leave 1 millimeter of space at the top. Use a spoon or scooper to fill your pod with grounds. Pat the grounds down with your thumb or spoon to compact them and increase the flavor of your espresso. Leave a small amount of space on top so that your aluminum foil can be compacted into your coffee when it brews.[14]
- If you leave too much space at the top, the aluminum foil may be pushed into the cup, sending grounds all over your Nespresso machine.
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4Place the foil over your pod and wrap it under the lip. Place the aluminum foil flat across the top of your pod so that a little bit sticks out past each side of the brim. Apply a little pressure to the brim with your nondominant hand to set the aluminum foil in place as you use your free hand to wrap the foil under the lip of the brim. When you’re done, pinch the aluminum foil against the brim to fix it permanently to your pod.[15]
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5Use your refilled pod the same way that you would use a normal pod. Place your pod in your Nespresso machine and use it as you normally would. The pod will function the same way that a standard Nespresso pod does. When you’re done, you can repeat the process or put the pod in a Nespresso recycling bag.[16]
- If your aluminum foil falls off, you’ll have to clean the inside of your machine with a wet paper towel or cloth. This can be annoying, but it won’t be particularly hard to do.
wikiHow Video: How to Recycle Nespresso Pods
References
- ↑ https://www.nespresso.com/us/en/order/accessories/original/recycling-bag
- ↑ https://www.nespresso.com/us/en/how-to-recycle-coffee-capsules
- ↑ https://www.recyclingtoday.com/article/nespresso-expands-recycling-partnership-ups/
- ↑ https://www.recyclingtoday.com/article/nespresso-expands-recycling-partnership-ups/
- ↑ https://www.recyclingtoday.com/article/nespresso-expands-recycling-partnership-ups/
- ↑ https://www.recyclingtoday.com/article/nespresso-expands-recycling-partnership-ups/
- ↑ https://www.recyclingtoday.com/article/nespresso-expands-recycling-partnership-ups/
- ↑ https://www.recyclingtoday.com/article/nespresso-expands-recycling-partnership-ups/
- ↑ https://www.nespresso.com/us/en/order/accessories/original/recycling-bag
- ↑ https://www.recyclingtoday.com/article/nespresso-expands-recycling-partnership-ups/
- ↑ https://www.recyclingtoday.com/article/nespresso-expands-recycling-partnership-ups/
- ↑ https://www.digitaltrends.com/home/how-to-recycle-or-reuse-nespresso-pods/
- ↑ https://www.digitaltrends.com/home/how-to-recycle-or-reuse-nespresso-pods/
- ↑ https://www.digitaltrends.com/home/how-to-recycle-or-reuse-nespresso-pods/
- ↑ https://www.digitaltrends.com/home/how-to-recycle-or-reuse-nespresso-pods/
- ↑ https://www.digitaltrends.com/home/how-to-recycle-or-reuse-nespresso-pods/
About This Article
Nespresso allows you to easily recycle your used Nespresso pods through their recycling program. Order a free Nespresso recycling bag the next time you purchase pods online or at a Nespresso boutique. The bag will hold up to 200 original pods or 100 VertuoLine pods. Once your bag is full, drop it off at the nearest Nespresso collection point. There are over 120,000 collection points worldwide. Alternatively, drop the used pods off at a UPS store or Nespresso boutique. You can also give your bag of used pods to the delivery driver who drops off your new Nespresso pods. Order a new recycling bag for free each time you buy new Nespresso pods so you always have one to collect your used pods in.
