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News | 8 August 2025
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Mug.Cycle makes using reusable cups easy

After running a café on the waterfront for 17 years, Simon Edmonds knows a thing or two about hospitality. His current venture is one that still allows people to have delicious hot beverages – but with zero waste.

Mug.Cycle at Harbourside market with cups in forefront and signs and caravan in the background.

Simon is the brain behind Mug.Cycle, a reusable cup sharing system that brings rescued mugs to a variety of a cafes and locations in the central city, so people can ditch their single-use cups in favour of a real mug.  

After receiving funding from Wellington City Council through the Waste Minimisation Seed Fund, they have been able to expand their business, including having a presence at the Harbourside Market. 

“We have a large stock of second-hand mugs donated from the Wellington City Council Tip Shop. These are washed and sterilised by FillGood at the Sky Stadium, and then stored in a lockup near Frank Kitts Park. These are then delivered by bike trailers to the Harbourside Market. 

“People can choose a real cup instead of a throwaway one as we have three stands and drop off boxes which are located next to the three market coffee vendors. We also offer mugs and our stands at events and cafes for hire.”  

The purpose of this is simple, explains Simon. People can pick up a mug and then return it to the stand to be cleaned. 

“It gives Wellingtonians another option if they forget their reusable cup. It also reduces litter and landfill waste as single use cups are responsible for significantly more waste and climate emissions than just using a real cup. As we use rescued mugs it is also making use of an existing resource that would have otherwise ended up in the landfill.”   

The idea came about after the COVID lockdown when Simon felt as if the community made environmental gains, and he wanted to see this continue.  

“There was limited recycling and rubbish collections during COVID, so we were careful with what we consumed. We spent more time in local reserves and the streets were empty of traffic. 

“As a cafe owner I felt I didn’t want to go back to the business with my usual mentality especially after I rode my bike down Adelaide Rd and came across a traffic jam of cars waiting to buy fast food in litter. It was at this point that I decided to start the zero-waste journey.” 

Simon initially partnered with others working in the waste minimisation space and together they created an event on the waterfront where they had every café on the waterfront going without single use cups for a whole day.  

After that, Simon’s café went completely single-use free and he worked with the Tip Shop to collect rescued mugs and the concept for Mug.Cycle came next.  

“I guess this is how Mug.Cycle was born. This event led to other similar things happening on a wider scale with, single use cup free Fridays in July with cafes all across the country.”   

Many Wellingtonians have been making the most of Mug.Cycle at the Harbourside Market, and it’s become a permanent fixture there. Simon says he is overwhelmed by the support. 

“It’s been great spending more time at the Harbourside market and getting to know the vendors, I’ve been buoyed by the number of positive comments and support we have had from vendors and visitors alike.” 

Thanks to the Waste Minimisation Seed Fund, Mug.Cycle was able to take off, adds Simon. 

Mug.Cycle team at Harbourside market with cups in forefront and signs in the background.

“The Council fund has been invaluable as it has allowed me to be able to do this work, and also freeing me of the financial burden of being constantly at the cafe through the lean times of being in hospitality.” 

Wellingtons Zero Waste Strategy is looking to achieve intergenerational sustainability through a move to the Circular Economy. To achieve this, Poneke needs zero waste businesses and initiatives like Mug.Cycle. 

Reuse, repair, and sharing initiatives not only save waste but also save resources by enabling things like cups, clothes and electronics to stay in use for as long as possible therefore displacing the need for more things to be manufactured. 

Mug.Cycle is a fun, collaborative project between council, businesses and residents that makes using reusable cups easy.  

The Waste Minimisation Fund has recently been revamped. The funds have increased from $100,000 to $250,000 per annum.  

The small grants pool will now accept applications up to $5000 in value, an increase on a previous cap of $2000 – a change that reflects the increasing costs of delivering projects and other initiatives. The large grants pool has been increased to $200,000 per annum and has had its upper limit on applications removed to enable high impact projects.  

Check out the webpage for all the details including our criteria and eligibility information. Waste Minimisation Fund - Community support - Wellington City Council  

If you have a project in mind but you’d like to chat it through with someone before submitting an application, please get in touch: waste.education@wcc.govt.nz.