Edible cups - the sustainable whistle for drinks on the go
Often you notice it when you order something to eat or when you buy something to eat at an event: With plastic bags, plastic plates, plastic cups and plastic cutlery, you primarily produce a lot of rubbish! In order to counteract this and to give sustainability and innovation a new twist, we from the start-up company Wisefood designed drinking cups from a biscuit structure that makes them consumable - according to the motto: "Zero waste!", which means: " Nothing is wasted!"
What can you imagine when you think of edible drinking cups?There is much more behind this new innovation than you might think at first glance. That's why today we show all the properties that it brings with it: 1. TastyAs the name suggests: this cup variant is edible and tastes good. With its sweet biscuit taste, it complements hot drinks in particular with an additional snack for in between. At the same time, this property makes them an attraction in every gastronomic establishment. It is probably also worth mentioning that the taste of the biscuit structure has a positive effect on the taste of the respective drink. While the taste of almost every drink that is consumed in a plastic or paper cup often changes to your disadvantage because the taste of plastic or paper mixes with it at the same time, the sugar in the biscuit cup acts as a flavor carrier. The slightly sugary biscuit flavor consequently underscores the taste of the drinks and gives them a special kick. Another advantage is that you don't produce any waste on the way if you treat yourself to a coffee or something else. Instead, people can experience “coffee to go” in a new way with the edible drinking cup. From now on you can even enjoy the drinking vessel, nothing has to be discarded or wasted.2. BiodegradableAs a cup variant that is suitable for consumption, it is also biodegradable as a result. Even if you don't want to taste it, it doesn't remain as plastic waste for many thousands of years as a burden on the environment. Their ingredients are all completely natural. So just as they come from nature, they go back there again without further ado. For this reason, they are ecologically completely harmless.3. VersatileThe consumable beverage cups impress with their versatility. They can be used for all possible beverage variations. Whether hot drinks such as coffee, tea or cocoa, or cold drinks, the possible uses are almost unlimited. You can even use them as ice cream sundaes. For one or two scoops of ice cream or a portion of soft ice cream, they are a sustainable alternative to the plastic or paper version. At the same time, they spice up the ice cream with their novelty and delicious taste. They become a natural accessory for every drink and every portion of ice cream, similar to a waffle.4. StableAn important point among the criteria is of course the stability of our consumable drinking cups. These are heat and moisture stable. With coffee at a temperature of 85 degrees Celsius, they remain crispy for up to 40 minutes before they slowly begin to soften. They retain their tightness for up to 12 hours before the first drops penetrate the biscuit shell. This puts them in competition with many a paper cup.With our innovation, "to-go" drinks in particular become a new experience.Delicious biscuit cups - a sustainable innovation as a solution to many a problemOur former crowdfunding project, which emerged from a student project in 2016, now offers many innovative alternatives to products Plastic, wood or paper Among other things, our coffee mugs, along with many other products, have numerous advantages - often in contrast to the plastic or cardboard versions. The idea is to create a product from predominantly natural and carefully selected raw materials that, above all, makes the “coffee to go” principle a very special experience. From the start of production, care is taken to ensure that it does not harm the environment. During production, we ensure that the drinking cups are made from biscuit dough in Europe and in compliance with the highest quality standards. All production facilities are checked in detail so that they meet our maximum quality standards. By producing in Europe, we avoid long transport routes for the raw materials and the end products in order to leave the smallest possible ecological footprint. Through direct routes, we reduce the CO2 emissions of transport vehicles such as airplanes or trucks and thus also make a contribution against environmental pollution. Regular checks at all stages of production guarantee a result of the highest quality and value. In addition to the sustainable manufacturing process, the edibility of the biscuit cups brings with it a completely new character compared to other drinking vessels, which consistently continues the guideline of sustainable product manufacture. With their biscuit taste, they are a luxury food that has various advantages in addition to any drink or ice cream. The most important advantage is that much less waste is produced than with conventional drinking vessels made of paper, wood or plastic. Its main ingredients of water, wheat bran, oatmeal and sugar make this cup variant fully biodegradable and therefore have no impact on the environment. As a special bonus, their smart taste turns the "drink-to-go" experience into an object that, in addition to the enjoyment, should leave the consumer with the feeling that they have done something good and supported them with their purchase. Another plus of the tasty drinking cups is that their ingredients do not contain any animal products or animal additives. They are vegan and can therefore be enjoyed by absolutely everyone with a clear conscience. The avoidance of animal products supports the aspect of sustainability in production in many ways. In this way, we act for animal welfare and avoid all negative aspects of factory farming, such as increased CO2 production.The contents of the consumable cup variant are completely "GMO-free". "GMO" stands for "genetically modified organism", i.e. for genetically modified products. Consequently, none of the raw materials needed to manufacture the cookie-flavored drinking cups are genetically modified. In general, we carefully select our raw materials for the biscuit cups. All raw materials are renewable, so they offer a never-ending source of supplies for our biscuit cups. They are grown to high standards before finally going into cup production. The edible drinking cups therefore cover a whole range of factors that stand for an appreciative and sustainable approach to the environment and also give the consumer a completely carefree enjoyment experience right down to the last bite. Our coffee mugs as a glimpse into the futureWith the production of the biscuit mugs, we are forward-looking and follow the EU guidelines.This already agreed in 2018 to ban single-use plastic in the future. From July 2021, the production of single-use plastic will no longer be permitted within the countries of the EU. We have already anticipated the idea of plastic-free production of disposable items for the catering and food industry and have been successfully trying out the production of alternative products for several years now. The biscuit cups also seem to prove their worth: many companies have already recognized their special feature and are taking part in improving the way we deal with the environment in a sustainable and long-term way. We now supply over 5000 branches in over 20 countries and the number is growing every day. In addition to online trading, many well-known grocery stores, such as ALDI, EDEKA, REWE or MIGROS, also offer our products for everyone to buy. Our start-up company strives to enable every interested branch to invest in sustainable products - with the positive effect that the drinking cups, as a luxury product added to the drink (and of course all other of our products) are a crowd puller. As an important addition, it should be added that they do not bring any disadvantages to the owners of gastronomic establishments. They are easy to store and come in a variety of sizes. The best before date of 9 months allows you to calculate the number of cups used, avoiding possible losses and unnecessary food waste. Together with the respective companies, we design offers that enable everyone to purchase our products at a fair price. Since our consumable drinking cups are suitable for all drinks and give both coffee and cocktails an extra kick, they are used in cafés and bars alike. Television is also helping to make the beverage world a little bit more sustainable with our consumable beverage cups. They were already on the Pro7 program for “Galileo”, and the RTL Nachtjournal also took the opportunity to pay attention to our biscuit cups. You could see them in "Die Höhle der Löwen", among other things, but now also in many other television programs of well-known German broadcasters such as ARD or SAT1.In the meantime, we can also proudly look back on a number of prizes and awards. We are winners of the "European Institute of Innovation&Technology Award". The "EIT Food", as the initiative is called for short, is funded by the EU and is a leader in the development of sustainable, healthy and trustworthy innovations in the food industry. This award is currently one of the most important in the food industry. We are also winners of "Germany - Land of Ideas". This initiative honors promising innovations that are groundbreaking for today's and future society. The "Cleantech Group" recognized us as one of the top 50 start-up companies worldwide. This award is given annually to very promising startups with a high impact.The "Transgourmet Newcomer Award" from "TransGourmet - cash&carry" also marks a special milestone as a sign of our valuable and sustainable production method . It was awarded for our ecological and sustainable approach to developing a product with the aim of being able to permanently avoid single-use plastic. Consumable drinking cups are therefore very likely an important part of the future of our drinking and eating culture.They point the way to an ecological and sustainable food industry, in which the goal should always be to reduce the waste of our resources to a minimum and instead to save and value them. Our cups made of biscuit dough manage the balancing act between ecologically valuable production and a additional improvement in the quality of food consumption. Not only do they consist of carefully selected, renewable raw materials that go into our cup production under the highest standards, but with their sugary biscuit taste as a flavor enhancer, they also sharpen the senses for a fuller taste of every drink. The special bonus is that not even waste is produced. After drinking coffee, the coffee mug simply follows as a snack and ends up in the stomach and not in the environment. So a drink may not end with the last sip, but with the last bite..