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Crypto.com Arena, the Peacock Theater is betting everything on reusable cups
Crypto.com Arena
Courtesy of AEG
Following a test run at two Depeche Mode concerts in December, AEG is implementing a full-time reusable cup program at its Crypto.com Arena and Peacock Theatre buildings in Los Angeles, it was announced Tuesday.
In collaboration with hospitality partner Levy, both locations will replace all single-use cups at food and beverage destinations with products from r.World, a sustainability company.
Here’s how it works: Used plastic cups are collected in specially marked containers, then taken to a nearby r.World industrial washing center, where they are cleaned and returned to Crypto.com.
“We are thrilled to be the first arena in Southern California to introduce a full-time reusable cup program as brought to us through our sustainability team at AEG,” Lee Zeidman, president of Crypto.com Arena, Peacock Theater and LA Live, we read in a statement.
On Crypto.com, an average of 15,000 cups are used per event, a company spokesperson said. That plastic was recycled.
r.Cup Courtesy of r.World
The r.Cup program now operates in 84 permanent locations and serves approximately 275 independent events and festivals across the United States each year. It is already in place at 10 other AEG venues and several large-scale Goldenvoice music festivals.
The latest program will launch at select events, starting Aug. 15 with a Los Angeles Sparks WNBA game on Crypto.com and a Young Miko concert at the Peacock Theater across the street. It will be in effect when the NHL’s Los Angeles Kings and the NBA’s Los Angeles Lakers begin their seasons in October.
During Depeche Mode’s sold-out shows on Dec. 15 and 17, a total of 23,418 single-use cups were avoided, which was equivalent to eliminating 355 pounds of carbon dioxide, AEG noted. The company added that since it began working with r.World in November 2021, it has avoided more than 3.5 million single-use cups.