Business

Local Soda, Coffee Suppliers Going Green!

Mamaroneck Resident, College Student Creates Energy Efficient Brewing Process

NEW YORK (CBS) ― From your morning cup of joe to your afternoon soda, some of your favorite beverages are going green. CBS 2's Elise Finch explains how people from our area are leading the way.

The liquids we love are going green! For college student Luke Kelly, it starts with his morning coffee. The Mamaroneck resident developed a brewing process that doesn't use any energy and doesn't produce any waste.

"Because it's basically steeping in room temperature water for about 24 hours, there's a 4 or 5 step filtration process," said Founder of Luke's Brew, Luke Kelly. "The only byproduct is the coffee grounds which I actually use as compost in the gardens right outside the kitchen here. The actual coffee, because you can bottle it and you can keep it in your fridge for 4 weeks, every last drop is going to be enjoyed."

Luke's Brew was created because the 20-year-old wanted to offer coffee on his campus snack cart without having to lug around a brewing machine.

Not everyone can make their products using green practices from start to finish. So some big companies are changing things like raw ingredients, parts of their manufacturing process or their packing to be less wasteful.

"They're looking for a solution that doesn't compromise the brand," said President of 4Sight Inc. Stuart Leslie.

Leslie's company finds packaging solutions for big corporations. His team of industrial designers worked with Pepsi to create a bottle that uses 20 percent less plastic.

"You don't want to compromise the taste of the product by making it so thin that the product is damaged, you don't want to compromise the feel in the consumers hand, you don't want to compromise the brand look for the product…so that's where the real art and the science kind of come together," said Leslie.

Leslie says corporate interest, consumer demand and impending legislation mean you can expect more eco-friendly changes to your favorite beverages in the future.

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