About this article
Reducing waste on the streets and in the canals after an event was the main reason for the Zwollefonds to transition to reusable cups. They opted for a cup system with external washing provided by Verive 360. In this case study, the city center manager shares insights.
17 Apr 2025
7 min
Jet Kolkman
Moving away from disposable plastic
Anne Riemersma is Manager of the city center at the Zwollefonds and the Zwolle Events Organization. “The Zwollefonds is a collaboration of entrepreneurs in the city center. Together, we organize big events: from Carnival to King’s Day and Night, as well as the Street Festival, Blauwvingerdagen, Winterzwolle, and various cultural and culinary events.”
These are fantastic celebrations, but they can lead to a lot of waste in the streets and canals. “We started thinking about how this could be improved. The new regulations regarding disposable plastic also played a role,” Anne explains. Over a year ago, the Zwollefonds and Bunzl Foodservice joined forces to implement a reusable cup system for events.
“We’ve also received positive feedback from the municipality and environmental movements: they see fewer cups in the canals. We’re very pleased with that.”
“Now you see that the cups are no longer littering the streets after the event. The goal has been achieved, and that’s very positive!” Anne says cheerfully.
The reusable event cup: an eye-catcher
The cups in Zwolle are real eye-catchers. Residents of Zwolle proudly carry them around: with lanyards, chains, and hip bags, they stroll into the city center with their cup from the previous event. Artist Jeroen van Doornik designed the cup, featuring beautiful landmarks of Zwolle. “We wanted the cup to look good, so people would take good care of it. It shows the Peperbus in an exciting form, Museum de Fundatie, the Sassenpoort, the Railway Bridge, and a piece of the IJssel River.”
Besides the option to print unique artwork on the polypropylene cold cups, Anne also chose these cups because they are easily stackable, don’t take up much space, and have measurement marks. “This way, people can see that their beer is really 25 cl, and the cups can also be used for wine.”
Verive 360: how it works in Zwolle
To choose a suitable return system, the Zwollefonds experimented with different deposit systems. “It took some getting used to for us, the entrepreneurs, and the visitors. But now we’ve found a system that suits us and works,” he explains.
“As a visitor, you pay €1 for the cup. You don’t get that money back, but you can exchange the cup for another one with your next drink. The bars and restaurants pay much less. This way, we can cover the costs of the cup, the washing, and even part of the public toilets and security,” Anne explains. “The entrepreneurs don’t have any extra costs for the cups, and that’s what we wanted.”
Perfectly clean cups and smooth administration
Behind the scenes, there’s more going on: Verive 360 goes beyond supplying cups. “The cups need to be hygienically sound. To prevent everyone from washing in their own way or leaving the cups dirty for too long, we chose to have the cups washed externally and professionally,” Anne explains.
For entrepreneurs, the process is straightforward. “Through a simple ordering system, hospitality businesses indicate in advance how many cups they want to receive. They are delivered just in time, and after the event, they are collected, counted, and washed. With the detailed counting report, we can invoice the hospitality entrepreneurs individually.”
“This way, entrepreneurs who use a lot of cups and thus sell more drinks contribute more to the system than the smaller ones.”
An affordable system and pleasant collaboration
Why did the Zwolle Fund choose Verive 360 through Bunzl Foodservice? “Because it involved a lot of cups, a competitive price was important to us. The choice for Verive 360 was not only for pricing reasons but also because we immediately had a good feeling about Bunzl. The involvement, like Bunzl and Verive colleagues visiting the event, is important to me, and I appreciate that,” says Anne.
Anne’s tips for other municipalities and event organizations
Does the perfect system exist? Anne is honest about it. “I don’t think there’s a system with only advantages. But we do notice that this system suits us well, that there’s little waste on the streets, and we’re now accustomed to how it works. This can also be implemented in another city.”
There’s something he wants to emphasize. “At large events, we find it important that all hospitality entrepreneurs participate so that you can use the cup you get at one bar at another bar as well. So: make sure that everyone uses the same cups.”
Interested in implementing a reusable cup system?
Do you have questions about the approach in Zwolle, or do you want to start with reusable cups yourself? Send us a message at info@verive.eu or contact a Verive partner near you.
Jet Kolkman
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