Leong Wee Keat, Today Online 11 Oct 08;
THE stir in the coffee cup appears to have ceased, with coffee chains Spinelli and Starbucks closing their “dipper wells”.
The establishments have turned off the taps that were allowed to run into a container all day despite authorities declaring their flow rates to be “low”.
Both chains have put in place seemingly simple solutions — reducing the need for constantly flowing water to wash utensils, but maintaining customer safety standards at the same time.
Starbucks, which turned off its taps on Thursday evening, has started testing a single-use spoon as an alternative.
On Friday, Spinelli adopted a new operating procedure: Rinsing utensils with milk residue immediately — thermometers with normal water, spoons dipped in boiling water and placed in a mug filled with hot water. The mug is emptied once the water turns milky, said Spinelli.
Both coffee chains said they made the changes with water conservation in mind, but were unable to gauge how much water would be saved under the new systems.
According to one estimate, reported in British newspaper The Sun, the dipper well practice wastes over 23 million litres of water daily at Starbucks’ locations globally.
But how much did Public Utilities Board (PUB) officials — who visited both chains on Wednesday — play a part ininfluencing the changes?
Starbucks, which has 57 outlets here, said it recognised that the amount of water used by the dipper well system was “unacceptable” and has been working since last year to find a suitable solution.
The decision to embark on the single-use spoon test is from Starbucks Coffee, said marketing manager Ruth Yam.
Spinelli, with 28 branches here, however, admitted that PUB’s visit influenced the change and took the national water agency’s advice “seriously”, said assistant marketing communications manager Walts Tan.
When contacted, PUB’s director of water supply network Chong Hou Chun said officers conducted checks at the coffee joints to understand the function of dipper wells as well as determine the flow rates.
They were told that the use of dipper wells is an international practice for food safety and hygiene reasons, said Mr Chong.
“The tap flow rates at dipper wells are low,” he added.
Flow rates measured about 0.5 litres per minute as compared to an average unregulated flow rate of 12 litres per minute for wash basin taps.
PUB requires flow rates at wash basin taps not to exceed 6 litres per minute.
While Spinelli and Starbucks have made changes, the dipper well was still seen being used at Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf’s outlet at Republic Plaza. The coffee chain could not be reached for comment on Friday.
Starbucks, Spinelli turn off the tap
All 85 outlets of the two chains here abandon water-wasting dipper-well system for cleaning utensils
Amelia Tan, Straits Times 11 Oct 08;
ALL Starbucks and Spinelli coffee shops in Singapore have stopped using a controversial method of cleaning spoons that has drawn fire from environmentalists around the world.
The chains, which have a combined 85 outlets here, made the decision days after government water inspectors visited several outlets to examine their much maligned dipper-well system.
In this method, utensils are bathed in a continuous flow of tap water. The practice has been called 'wasteful' by environmentalists, and one estimate says it squanders 23 million litres of water a day in Starbucks locations world-wide.
Singapore's 57 Starbucks locations axed the dipper-well system on Thursday evening, while Spinelli's 28 outlets followed suit yesterday morning.
Staff at one Spinelli outlet said earlier this week that they were warned by officers from the national water agency PUB that they risked being fined if they continued using the system. Penalties for wasting water can go up to $50,000 for a first offence.
Singapore and Britain are the first countries with Starbucks stores to see the dipper wells discontinued.
Starbucks said baristas will now clean spoons in a dishwasher, while Spinelli said it plans to rinse the utensils under hot water and plunk them in a container.
Singapore Environment Council executive director Howard Shaw applauded the moves.
'I believe it was an oversight of the corporations. They probably didn't realise that they were wasting huge amounts of water. This case shows that public attention can lead to change.'
The controversy follows a report in the British tabloid The Sun - called the 'The great drain robbery' - that said Starbucks wastes enough water to fill an Olympic-size pool every 83 minutes.
The revelations have proven to be a public relations problem for the world's largest coffee chain, which has billed itself as environmentally sensitive.
The company maintains that a continuous flow of water is the most hygienic way to clean milk residue off spoons.
'The challenge lies in balancing customer safety and water conservation,' said Starbucks Coffee Singapore managing director Jeff Miller. 'We recognise that water usage is a topic of public concern and we have been working on alternatives to the dipper-well system since last year,' he said.
Mr Miller said he met all 57 Starbucks managers here on Wednesday to discuss cleaning the spoons in a dishwasher, a process that is less efficient than than the dipper-well system.
The company has ordered 2,200 new stainless steel spoons - along with 180 plastic collection containers - to make sure there are enough clean utensils to go around.
Spinelli spokesman Ross Bright said unlike Starbucks, the chain's stores switched off dipper wells during off-peak hours. But public outcry has convinced the company to shelve the system.
'Public perception is important to us. (The wells) have drawn so much attention recently as a source of water wastage.'
Spoons will now be rinsed under hot water and bathed in cups before being used again. Baristas will change the hot water in the cups once it is cloudy.
The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf and Swensen's, which use the dipper-well method, did not reply to e-mail seeking comment.
