roonee If you’re familiar with the joy of bubble tea or boba, you’ll be aware that it’s not always the most eco friendly of options. It usually comes served in a clear plastic cup, with a plastic film over the top of the cup, and a plastic boba straw. Some bubble tea shops have been making a conscious effort to make their drinks a little less harsh on the environment, but these efforts have not always been a success. The most common solution to the issue of all this plastic, is paper straws. Paper straws, however, haven’t been received well as they go soggy very quickly, and don’t always have the structural integrity needed to pierce the film in the first place.
Another incentive, like many coffee shops have introduced, has been to introduce reusable boba cups. These are made to last and can be used time and time again. The only problem with these is that they are bulky, and not easy to carry around with you. Additionally, if you fancy an impromptu bubble tea, what are the chances that you happen to have your reusable cup with you?
While bubble tea shops across the UK are working to find solutions to make their products more earth friendly, there are a few unlikely suspects that are paving the way – one of these is the newly opened Yano Cha in the small rural town of Bacup in Lancashire. Who would have thought that you could get some great eco bubble tea in Lancashire?
Eco Bubble Tea in Lancashire
Bacup is everything you’d expect from a small farming town nestled on the Lancashire / West Yorkshire border – the town centre makes up a few small streets and a handful of independent shops including butchers and bakers. Houses tend to be beautiful old stone terraces, and you don’t have to go far to be plunged into jaw-droppingly beautiful countryside. Amongst all of this, Yano Cha, and it’s a surprising but very welcome addition to the town.
You can find Yano Cha on Just Eat as well as being able to order in store, but the most remarkable thing about them is the much lower environmental impact that their drinks have compared to many other bubble tea shops.
Your tea will still be served in a clear plastic cup, but cups are very clearly labelled as being fully recyclable. The plastic film over the top of the cup has been replaced with a film made from plant material, and most notably, they’ve figured out the straws. Your drink will come with a straw in a paper packet that very clearly says ‘STRAW MADE FROM PLANTS’ and goes on to say that it’s industrially compostable, meaning you just need to put it into your food waste caddy once you’re done with it. The straw has enough structure to be able to pierce through the film on your drink with no problems, and won’t go even remotely mushy or soggy! A complete win in the world of bubble tea – well done Yano Cha.
