you'd think they could leave em in a trashcan outside by the dumpster, they usually keep em in a lil garbage can inside, which is too small anyway, they could use something that could hold more....I wish that they would leave em in a extra large trash can out back, then you could wait, and reap a larger amount.

but yeah...cutting the program during winter is stupid, everyone knows compost doesn't rest for the winter. it still rots. and many, like me, try to keep it at least a lil warm during the winter, and coffee grounds def. help!

someone should write the starbucks corp.

why write when one could call them.......oops, someone did call them,,,,,,,didn't do any good---they'll take the suggestion that people compost year round in some areas, but it's still going to be up to the Dist Manager if they're allowed to save them in the winter.

What a bunch of ignorance. The district manager would rather fill the landfills than let you have the grounds? Ridiculous. At "my" SB, the manager always offers my son and I a drink on the house and thanks us for coming by to pick them up.

Look folks, no matter how smart WE are about it, I will bet a dollar that it costs them a bit more time and effort to do this in the first place, and most gardeners like to be out in nice weather. Hence they don't have much of a demand in winter except for us, the tiny minority. And we are that. So it's purely economics on their part. Not defending it, I'm just saying they don't make these decisions arbitrarily. It's usually about the bottom line.

This policy change does not necessarily need to change anything. The three Starbucks I am familiar with (I don't drink coffee) threw away about 70-90% of their grounds (estimate) even when they 'saved' grounds.

The Starbuck grounds give-away was more of a PR thing, rather than a real effort to recycle. Maybe not officially, but certainly practically. For a year I went into the store(s)and got one bag of grounds, never was more than one offered. One day I went in and they had no grounds. I asked if I could check their dumpster. I pulled four bags out, and on later occasions never went back to the store. I learned what days the trash was collected and the best way to remove bags from the dumpster. I always left the door in the position I found it; and if a bag broke open it was cleaned up.

One note -- there is some trash in most of the bags found in the dumpster. Some expresso bags are in there, but most bag are of loose grounds (better than the expresso grounds which clump up).

The two items found to be valuable are three Rubbermaid plastic containers (I like 14 and 18 quart sizes); and a five dollar tool found at the hardware store which snags the bags by the knot. If you do not snag the bag by the knot, it will break open.

When I go to Starbucks, I just take the whole bag they have in the trashcan. They always have a bag available unless someone else has picked them up. They thank me because they don't have to bag them in the little bags. I use a big round plastic tub so that the bags won't leak or in case they bust, like Robert mentioned. If you get them prior to bagging in smaller bags or prior to filling the dumpster, they are saving money in dumpster space. Have you tried calling ahead and asking them to just leave a bag outside the back door for you to pick up? Strike up a good relationship with the manager there and you might find they will find a way around the issue for you. Especially if you present it as you doing them as much of a favor as they are doing you.

"I will bet a dollar that it costs them a bit more time and effort to do this in the first place."

If it does, then they are putting too much thought into it. Really, how much time and effort does it take to put UCGs in a bag and set it out the back door for composters and gardeners to pick them up??

"...they don't make these decisions arbitrarily. It's usually about the bottom line."

It's not about the bottom line. It's about people being lazy and so they do make these decisions arbitrarily. So now they are going to have to take out those UCGs in the winter when it's cold outside and blowing snow. Pity... I'd like to see the District Manager do it on such a day.

I work for Tim Horton's, the biggest coffee chain in Canada. We don't have anyone picking up our UCGs, but when I bring some home my co-workers are more than happy to fill those buckets and set them aside. They love not having to trudge the UCGs out to the green bin and heaving the 2o gallon pails into them. NOTE: All of our organics go to the municipal composting facility and not he landfill.

Anyways, having been in the restaurant business since '78, I know that it's simply a matter of inconvenience, laziness, lack of education/knowledge, stubbornness, etc. In regards to this matter, it is never about the bottom line or profit line, whatever we may wish to call it.

Tiffy, I gotta say that tox is right. More than likely some ambitious district manager is implementing a "lean six sigma" principle. It's getting really common in the corporate world. People that are responsible for finding ways of saving money have to show exactly why, too. They start counting the footsteps it requires for one to do something like pull grounds from one big bag to put into several smaller bags to be laid at the door. This costs and if not enough people are biting the bait, then it is a wasted effort on their part. That district manager can now say that he/she saved the company money by streamlining the program to meet what appears to be seasonal needs. Starbucks isn't in the business of saving the planet or their stores would be set up differently and they would be implementing more green energy savings such as sky lighting. This program is for publicity and appeal to customers and nothing less. The point is that they have to take those UCG's out anyway in winter if people aren't picking them up so why waste time (which equals money) on rebagging? Considering the number of Starbuck's that closed this year, I guarantee all management is under the gun on how to cut costs and streamline the processes.

No one asked Starbucks to put the grinds in smaller bags with a sticker on it. They could pull out the clear plastic bag that is lining their garbage can and hand it to me like that for all I care. I would gladly haul it to my car, heavy or not, and put it in my tub that I have there anyway.

The Stabucks that i frequent for UCG'S had told me they werent doing the garden thing any more this year, but when i went back for a coffee the manager siad, "Gee i havent seen you getting the coffee grounds lately," i told her what 2 empoloyees had told me about not saving them any more this year and she said she would be much happier that the few other people besides myself continued to pick them up instead of them going into the trash, she also mentioned that it was REALLY up to the store manager whether they were still participating in the USG for gardens program.

I stopped at one of the locations here I have gotten UCG from before. The bucket wasn't where it used to be, so I asked if they had any grounds I could have. The guy actually told me they weren't doing it anymore, well, because of their employees. They made a mess doing it.

I was so stunned I didn't even ask him how they made it to the trash with 'em then...

I have never found a SB in this city that regularly saves the UCGs for gardeners at any time of year. This truly is not a "green" area, not many people compost, and I suspect that there has never been much of a demand for the UCGs. I have stopped at many SB and asked for grounds, sometimes a kid will grudgingly bag what's on hand a give me a little silver bag. Usually they just say "NO, we don't do that here".

A tiny little coffee shop opened in the neighborhood recently. Last week I asked them to save the grounds for me and they agreed. I gave them a 5 gallon bucket, asked them to call me for pickup when it's about half full. That took about 3 or 4 days. So I'm trying it, hopefully they'll keep it up. I do buy a cup of coffee when I go. They don't seem to do a whole lot of business so I hope the place survives.

Karen

I don't mess with SB. I like the little independent coffee stands (the drive throughs). My favorite one dumps all their grounds in a 35 gallon can they keep by their back door. First come first serve. Seek them out. It's well worth the effort.

I walk into Starbucks and I ask, "May I relieve you of your coffee grounds?" I am given the large bag from the trash and I walk out. I don't recall ever leaving empty handed. I never purchase garbage bags anymore, either.

I think that the employees appreciate being deprived of a trip to the dumpster. And I think that they dislike filling up the little silver bags, so would prefer that you just take the whole trash liner. I have never gotten a single piece of trash in my grounds, although I've heard that other people do.

I kind of prefer just getting the trash bag. I re-use the bags too. Once in a while I get a napkin, but no big deal. One day I got a bonus, there were banana peels in there!
I need to stop back by the one that has the messy employees, and tell them I don't care about the little silver bags... I should have said it then, but I was just so shocked that the guy said no...

I know I'm not the only one picking them up still - yesterday I stopped by 2 locations, and someone beat me to them...

Here in Florida, SB's ucg's are being used not only for compost but to control Asian Cycaid Scale which is epidemic in south and central areas. The guys at my local Starbucks are not only pleasant (and very neat), they carry the big garbage bags of grounds to my car for me! (okay, so I have gray hair and a lot of wrinkles, y'reckon that's why?) Hopefully, they will recycle grounds during the winter down here because that's our best growing season! cora

I get plenty from the 2 SB that I go to. They have them ready for people in the fantastic plastic bags. I think there are many people in my area getting the UCGs. An employee told me Friday that 6 people had already stopped in and picked some up. When I got there, the bag wasn't too full but they were more than happy to empty their hoppers into what I was able to get.

Last night we had a cold snap and I KNEW they would have alot and I got A LOT of UCGs.

The other SBs I go to has those silly silver bags, I'm not impressed. I like the big plastic ones so I can put leaves in them to start composting before I need them in the pile.

Even though I like the super size and request the entire trashbag, the idea behind the silly little silver bags wasn't silly. They are reusing those, too. It's what the coffee came in the door in, so they are sending it back out in them and using the same trashbag rather than changing it out. At least that's what I was told.

I noticed a regrettable trend the last two visits to the SB dumpster. The bags are not being knotted anymore, making it harder to snag the bag out of the dumpster.

Found three box cutters and two stainless steel containers in the trash over the years.

I just made a deal with my local coffee shop. I will still go to SB, but the competition there has gotten heated. There are three of us now racing there daily for the goods.

I visited the local coffee place and left my number and the owner called me. He was SO incredibly nice. He said that if I would bring him a 13 gallon trash can that they could dedicate for UCG, then I could have all of them.

So to Wal-Mart I went. Got the trash can, took it in and had a fabulous conversation with him about cats and composting. I made a new friend. On Saturday I took my son there for lunch and the food was fabulous too. I don't drink coffee, so I'm happy that they have great food too so that I can do business there.

dlpasti, maybe if you have somewhere local like that, you could try to strike a deal?

I also have gotten stainless steel cups in the bags of UCG from Starbucks several times. They are always so happy when I return them.

I wish they were happy enough to reserve all of the UCG for me, but it's first-come, first-serve and I've been 15 minutes too late for the large haul several times lately. The employees always seem to be so sad when they have to tell me there aren't any. They are very sweet. The bouquets I brought them during the growing season may have influenced their reaction to me though.

Well, just for grins, I stopped back by the one location that doesn't give them anymore. I got a guy who said it was his first day at that location, and he seemed pretty sheepish about saying they don't save them. This time, I said something about just taking away the trash bag, but he looked, and said there weren't many grounds, and they were really mixed in with a bunch of trash.

It's a bummer too, that location is on one of my more common routes through town when I'm there. I can't even make any special arrangements because I don't regularly go to town. I live about 10 miles out, so I'm not going there just for UCGs...

Oh well...