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Next time you take a sip from your Starbucks latte, take a look at the paper cup and lid – there’s a good chance they were designed and made in Ystrad Mynach.

Transcend Packaging, based on Dyffryn Business Park, designed the new plastic-free cups and lids with the global coffee chain and is already manufacturing them and shipping them out across Europe.

Recycling paper cups has always been a challenge because of the difficulty in separating the thin plastic coating found on their inside.

Transcend Packaging, which employs around 200 people, has fixed this by replacing the plastic with a mineral-based coating. According to the firm, it is the first application of the technology in coffee cups at scale.

The traditional single-use plastic lid has also been replaced with a fibre alternative, coated with the same mineral-based material.

Part of the funding for the development of these new products came from the Cardiff Capital Region (CCR) – a partnership of ten local authorities in south Wales.

Channing Nuss, Transcend’s co-founder and its director of corporate affairs and sustainability, said: “This project marks a defining moment for Transcend and manufacturing innovation in Wales.

“Starbucks’ Europe-wide rollout of this new technology allows us to demonstrate the transformative potential of the packaging solution we’ve developed.”

He added: “With CCR’s Innovation Investment Capital support, we’ve delivered a breakthrough in paper cup technology that proves how innovation and collaboration can drive global change.”

The firm recently had the UK Government’s Welsh Secretary Jo Stevens visit its factory, alongside other representatives of the CCR.

Ms Stevens said: “Transcend Packaging are a fantastic Welsh success story. Through their partnership with Starbucks they have successfully grown their exports and are providing more good jobs that put money in the pockets of local people.

“The UK Government is backing innovative businesses like Transcend, via our investment in Cardiff Capital Region, which will help us achieve our mission to create economic growth in every part of Wales and the UK.”

Cllr Anthony Hunt, deputy chair of CCR, added: “The progress being made by the team at Transcend is remarkable and shows what can be achieved when bodies such as Cardiff Capital Region collaborate with innovative companies in the private sector.

“The funding from the Innovation Investment Capital [fund] has helped to spark jobs growth and environmental progress through Transcend’s innovation.”

Established in 2017, Transcend provides sustainable packaging solutions to customers in the food
service, food and beverage and health and beauty industries.

Its Ystrad Mynach factory was the first major producer of paper straws in Europe when it started operations in 2018. It has two other factories in Europe.