black coffee lids

Toronto cafes under pressure to stop using black coffee cup lids

As the push to ban black plastic continues, Torontonians are slowly realizing that black takeout containers aren't the only problem: black coffee lids are just as bad. 

It seems like people are only now picking up on the fact that – just like the rest of black plastic materials – those lids aren't recyclable, no matter how much you rinse them. 

Many people are taking to Twitter to demand that coffee shops stop using black lids and switch them out for recyclable white ones instead.

Cafes like Dark Horse and Second Cup have already been called out for their use of black coffee lids, and the pressure is on for other cafes in the city. 

Businesses like the Tempered Room in Parkdale and Leslieville's Tango Palace have all switched over to eco-friendly lids since the beginning of the year. 

And with more than 80 restaurants going straw-less in Toronto, it looks like the city's slowly making some moves to eventually go plastic – at least, black plastic – free. 

Lead photo by

Dark Horse Cafe


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