A quick, convenient boost of caffeine can be priceless in the hectic daily life of a student. Keurigs have become the go-to source for thousands of college student caffeine fixes over the last several years. Company after company has hopped on the bandwagon, giving rise to the K-Cup.
Little do they know that there is another device with all of the ease of the Keurig that has been around for a hundred years: the French Press.
Many consumers are intimidated by the French Press without ever truly discovering how easy it is to use.
If you are still are not convinced to buy a French Press and throw out your Keurig immediately, consider the ways in which your K-Cup obsession could be sucking up your money and clogging up landfills.
Where All Your Money Went
To start off, Keurig units range from about $60 to $150 per unit. You can pick up a french press for $20 or less.
But let's break down the costs of buying K-Cups versus coffee grounds in a year, using Starbucks as an example. For those who do not know, coffee grounds are what are used to make coffee in a French Press. The average American consumes 2-3 cups of coffee per day.
One pack of Starbucks 24 K-Cups is priced at $17.99. If an average american were to buy a year supply of K-Cups, they would need to buy 32 24-count packs, costing $575.68.
On the other hand, a 1-pound bag of coffee grounds of the exact same Starbucks brand costs $12.95. Assuming a pound of coffee grounds can provide 36 cups of coffee, this means the average American would need to buy 21 pounds of coffee grounds for a year supply, costing $276.9.
This is not the difference of a few bucks. It is the difference between nearly $300 a year. Think of all the food you could buy with an extra $300 laying around.
Keurigs Are Trashy
...And French Presses are super classy. Study after study show the adverse effects of K-Cups on the environment.
To start off, more than 95% of K-Cups are neither biodegradable nor recyclable. Not only are they made from a plastic that is only considered recyclable in a few cities in Canada, but the unrecyclable aluminum top is extremely difficult to remove. This means each and every single one of them is either put in a landfill or, even worse, littered into the environment.
According to the Atlantic, if every one of the 9.8 billion (and counting) K-Cups were placed side by side, they would circle the Earth at least twelve times.
People have become so concerned with the massive waste associated with using Keurigs that an anonymous video was posted called "Kill the K-Cup." It features aliens attacking society with K-Cups falling from the sky in a doomsday style. The video has over 800,000 viewers. They have an accompanying hashtag, #killthekcup, and petition with over 36,000 supporters.
French Press: The Game Changer
French Presses are not only economically and environmentally friendly, but are a breeze to use. You get the ease of the Keurig without the guilt of using your money irresponsibly and damaging the environment we all call home. You can get coffee in six easy steps in less than five minutes for next to nothing.
Step 1
Start to boil your water ASAP to be the most time efficient. Using a hot plate, kettle, or microwave is the best way to do this.
Step 2
While the water is boiling, scoop coffee grounds into the bottom of the French Press with the lid and plunger removed. If you are making one cup of coffee, use one to two tablespoons of coffee grounds.
Step 3
Once water is boiled, pour in just enough water to cover the coffee grounds and stir to "pre-heat" the coffee.
Step 4
Pour in the rest of the water and immediately replace the lid with the plunger all the way to allow the coffee to steep. Wait four minutes.
Step 5
Once four minutes have elapsed, press the plunger all the way to the bottom to filter out the grounds.
Step 6
Pour your coffee and enjoy the magic that is the French Press!