Cheers!

Also, I recently discovered POM jars for sale at Goodwill (a thrift store) for $0.99, which would imply that the general public thinks they’re at least somewhat aesthetically pleasing and that they’re better than the other china and glassware priced less than the POM glass!

That said, it’s obviously less resource and energy intensive to drink self-made tea from tap water because transporting water via existing pipe infrastructure is more efficient than transporting the mass that makes up packaging and liquid, which is quite dense (~8.3 lbs/gal, 1kg/ L). In addition to transportation energy/CO2, there’s the packaging. In this case, the packaging isn’t significantly heavier than a traditional glass bottle. The steel cap is reusable,and fortunately, that too can be recycled. However, I’ve found that the plastic-coated paper seal in the lid degrades over time. Admittedly the packaging also has a shrink wrap label (likely polystyrene) that is not readily recyclable. While this isn’t great, it too has some environmental benefits.

By printing only their logo on the glasses, POM can keep manufacturing costs lower, minimize their risk and simplify the management of their packaging inventory (if their product line changes, they aren’t left with a million glasses printed with a discontinued drink label).

I think the glasses also benefit from a graphic design standpoint by not being cluttered with nutrition facts and other label contents when the packaging is being reused as a drinking glass.

Ultimately, I think it’s leaps and bounds better than the run of the mill iced-tea bottle. Drink up!