Is the capsule coffee machine an epoch-making invention or an environmental killer? The inventor said he regretted it.

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What kind of coffee would you like today? Caramel macchiato or american? Insert the capsule and press the button, and within a minute, a cup of freshly brewed coffee appears in front of you. However, behind the convenience, is there a hidden environmental concern?

The invention of capsule coffee

In recent years, the hot capsule coffee machine has actually come out as early as 1976.

Eric Favre, an engineer at Nestle headquarters, had been wondering if there was a new, faster way to brew coffee. Inspired by the creamer ball, he developed a prototype of the capsule coffee machine, so that ordinary people at home, but also more convenient brewing coffee, Eric Favre is always dissatisfied with the flavor of capsule coffee, think that compared to the Italian coffee machine Epresso is still a little worse.

The brewing process of capsule coffee:

In order to find inspiration, he launched an Italian coffee tour, in Rome, a cafe Caffè Sant 'Eustachio, Eric Favre found that the barista is using a traditional Italian coffee machine, but in the process of brewing coffee, unlike other baristas will press the hand to the bottom once, but divided into 3- 4 times, the key is to bring air into the coffee, because the coffee powder and the air are fully combined to lead out the unique aroma of coffee.

Eric Favre was enlightened. After returning home, he set out to improve the original design. Before the hot water for brewing coffee flows into the capsule, fine air bubbles are injected into the hot water first. This way, when brewing coffee, the air can fully combine with the coffee liquid, so that the aroma release is more perfect.

Although Eric Favre created a new type of coffee machine that satisfied him, Nestle did not take it seriously because most of its revenue came from instant coffee and the general public did not understand Eric Favre's new concept. It wasn't until 1986 that Nestlé officially established a subsidiary, Nespresso, to start selling capsule coffee machines commercially, 10 years after their invention.

Coffee capsules designed by Eric Favre

Nestle's coffee capsules

Nestle capsule coffee machine in the initial sales volume is not as expected, can be described as bleak, there are two reasons:

1. In the past, Nestle's advertising targets were household consumers, but the target audience for capsule coffee machines was offices and restaurants, so Nestle advertising could not be effectively communicated.

2. Capsule coffee machines are unfamiliar products to consumers, and their main sales channel is coffee machine retailers, making it difficult for Nestle to communicate directly with consumers.

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Therefore, Nestle changed its sales methods, set up its own sales base, let consumers personally experience capsule coffee, and set up a membership system to understand consumer needs and manage customer relations. Through word-of-mouth marketing from customers, the sales of capsule coffee machines gradually improved. Nestlé then reached out to high-end consumers through the hotel and airline channels to create a high-quality and fashionable brand image.

Nespresso had sales of about $1 billion in 2006, but reached $3 billion in 2011, growing at an average rate of 20 - 30% per year. However, due to the gradual expiration of Nestle's patent application and competition from other manufacturers, its sales growth rate has slowed down, but it still does not affect its position as the global leader in capsule coffee machines. Among more than 50 manufacturers, Nestlé has a global market share of more than 35%, followed by Sara Lee at 18% and Green Mountain Coffee at 8%.

It is worth mentioning that although Nespresso has a global market share of more than 35%, it has a market share of less than 10% in the United States. This is because Americans prefer a lighter American coffee flavor, while Nestle sells mostly Italian coffee flavors, so it is not favored by American consumers. On the other hand, competitor Green Mountain Coffee K-Cup, which focuses on American coffee flavor, is loved by consumers and has a market share of 90% in the United States.

The inventor's regret.

The convenient and simple coffee capsules are the reason why capsule coffee machines are criticized. Eric Favre invented coffee capsules, weighing about 3 grams, but only packaging material-aluminum accounted for 2 grams, and in recycling, must cut open the used coffee capsules, and then pour out the coffee powder, excessive packaging and inconvenience recycling to create a lot of garbage.

John Sylvan, the inventor of K-Cup, also came forward and publicly urged the public to refuse to drink and buy capsule coffee. K-Cup was created for the American market, which prefers large American coffee, so the capsules are larger than other brands. However, John Sylvan, who aimed at offices, did not expect capsule coffee to be popular with home users and regretted inventing the environmentally harmful capsule coffee machine, because K-Cup capsules alone can circle the earth 10 times a year.

Of course, these big companies also respond to environmental issues. Nestle promises to make coffee capsules 100 percent recyclable by 2020. K-Cup is the introduction of reusable capsules, but the use is still not popular. Other brands saw this opportunity and introduced naturally decomposable capsules to reduce the burden on the environment.

And despite the caf é industry's commitment to the environment, users must cooperate with recycling to reduce waste.

Is a coffee machine worth buying? The positive and negative discussions on the Internet are heated, which actually depends on the needs of consumers themselves. For people who already brew coffee, a capsule costs NT$21, which is relatively expensive, and it seems that capsules do increase the burden on the environment.

In recent years, there has been an environmental movement to boycott capsule coffee K-cup. This video on Youtube appeals to the public to "KILL THE K-CUP." BEFORE IT KILLS OUR PLANET.”(Resist K-CUP before it destroys our planet):

Coffee brewing technology with the times, from the Italian coffee machine to capsule coffee, may be unimaginable, perhaps in the future there will be both convenience, and do not harm the earth coffee brewing method appears, do not know readers for capsule coffee machine opinion is how?