Last week I was invited by Nespresso to visit their distribution and recycling center in Brazil. I had already seen Marina Klink (@1_cafe_e_a_conta) talk about her visit and I must admit I was slightly jealous. So, I obviously accepted the invitation immediately.
The visit happened today. As arranged, we met at the NEC – Nespresso Expertise Center – in São Paulo. To my surprise, only one other customer was on the tour as well. We arrived before the NEC opened, and one of the specialists greeted us, we had a coffee and off we went to the distribution and recycling centre in neighbouring Barueri.
There, we were met by Cláudia, Head of Coffee Affairs & Sustainability, and Pedro, from Marketing. We also met the other two guests: a representative of a recycling collective and an artist who makes jewellery from used capsules.
The facility is really large, and all orders delivered by post and sent to the boutiques depart from there – same-day orders delivered by bikers are sent from the NEC. We didn’t get to tour the whole DC, our visit was limited to the recycling area. Claudia delivered a presentation about Nespresso’s commitment, its aspiration for the next few years and the status of the recycling operation in Brazil and worldwide.
Do you know what impressed me the most? We still recycle very little around here. Not everybody keeps their used capsules and takes them to the boutique when they buy new ones. Those who buy online and receive them by post probably don’t go to a boutique just to drop them off. And I imagine very few people know that since 2013 they can give their used capsules to the biker who makes the same day deliveries. I only found out last week, when I watched their recently released video about it!
Nespresso really takes this matter seriously and it is up to us, customers, to take it seriously too. The recycling operation could take on a much larger quantity than it currently handles. They are worried about the whole recycling supply chain, carbon offsetting, and the destination the material will have – Nespresso doesn’t reuse the aluminium here, as the capsules are produced in Switzerland.
It’s inspiring to see a company dedicated to this matter and this visit and the conversation made me an even bigger fan of the brand. And made me more confident to choose the original capsules only, because of their quality and the fact I can trust my used capsules will have the appropriate destination.
I want to thank Nespresso for the invitation and Cláudia and Pedro for their hospitality. I was honoured to know this was the first time customers were invited to visit the Distribution and Recycling Center. But the great news is, this will not be the last time. Their idea is to take more customers there for this tour and for that reason, I won’t mention the details and information shared. #nospoilers
So keep an eye out, interact with the brand, and get engaged, because Nespresso is paying attention to what happens on social media. And, regardless if you are invited or not, please recycle your capsules. It’s a small effort that does a lot for the environment.
PS: this post is not an ad.
