John Sylvan created the Keurig coffee maker in 1992 with his college roommate Peter Dragone. Now he feels bad about it–because of the impact the one-cup-at-a-time culture has on the environment. Sylvan told The Atlantic that he doesn’t even own a Keurig. “They’re kind of expensive to use,” he said. “Plus it’s not like drip coffee is tough to make.”
By all accounts the number of tiny coffee cup packs buried in the earth is massive, and it’s growing fast. Keurig says it takes its responsibility to improve recycling seriously. But inventor Sylvan says, “No matter what they say about recycling, those things will never be recyclable.” Sylvan sold his interest in his invention for $50,000 in 1997.
