McDonald's Corporation is partnering with TerraCycle's circular packaging service, Loop, to test reusable cups for hot beverages in the U.K., a news release said.

The initiative is part of the brand's effort to use so-called "circular" packaging to reduce waste. The Loop cups will be available next year to customers who choose to make a "small deposit but redeem it when they return the cup to McDonald's to be washed and reused.

"We're on a journey to rethink how we package products to give customers options that reduce waste, maintain the highest safety standards, and enhance the McDonald's experience they expect and enjoy. That's an innovation challenge, and it's one we think the Loop model has potential to help us solve," Jenny McColloch, vice president, global sustainability, said in the release. "Our commitment to communities is one of our core values as a company, and this pilot will generate important local insights and lessons to share along the way. We're excited to assess how new reusable packaging models could work within our system as we accelerate circular packaging solutions with our partners around the globe."

The cleaning system, developed by Loop and Ecolab, will sanitize each single-use cup before reuse.

"This groundbreaking partnership with McDonald's enables Loop to greatly expand its reach by bringing convenient reusable packaging options to the foodservice industry," TerraCycle and Loop CEO Tom Szaky said in the release. "The partnership paves the way for reusables to become an accessible option for consumers as they enjoy their meal on the go."

The Loop initiative is part of McDonald's pledge to find circular solutions for cups around the world that has brought the "Recup" system to Germany and has the brand exploring fully recoverable hot and cold fiber cups and reusable cup systems through the NextGen Cup Challenge in the U.S.

Almost all of McDonald's restaurants across the U.K. have recycling units for hot and cold paper cups, which end up at specialist recycling centers where the plastic lining is removed from the fiber and recycled.

"If we're going to curb the plastic waste crisis we need to invest in data driven strategies that reduce our demand for virgin plastic," Erin Simon, World Wildlife Fund head of plastic and business said in the release. "For McDonald's and the larger food and beverage sector, reuse will be one component of any reduction strategy. As a society, we need to ensure the plastics we use today are the plastics we'll be able to use again in the future."

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