Should BA ditch the plastic cutlery?
Jan 23, 2018, 4:03 pm
#31
Join Date: Jan 2018
Location: Glasgow, UK
Programs: BA Gold
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Jan 23, 2018, 4:10 pm
#32
Join Date: Dec 2016
Programs: BAEC GGL/CR; Hilton Diamond; Mucci des Puccis
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Blimey, had a look on ebay for teaspoons and do people really pay that sort of money for them? Back in the day I always picked up a teaspoon from a flight as a souvenir, and I had loads of them, sadly lost in a divorce. Ex-wife sadly now sitting on a goldmine if she only knew 
Jan 23, 2018, 4:22 pm
#34
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: SIN 5 days out of 7
Programs: BD*G, A3*G, BA-S, Accor Gold, IHG Amb
Posts: 5,505
Carbon Footprint??
Why are so many posters worried about the carbon footprint of metal cutlery? I thought the plastic argument was all about it not degrading and making its way into the Oceans?
By the way, ironically this means it is not releasing the carbon, which makes up that plastic, from being emitted as a gas into the atmosphere.
By the way, ironically this means it is not releasing the carbon, which makes up that plastic, from being emitted as a gas into the atmosphere.
Jan 23, 2018, 4:25 pm
#35
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: SIN 5 days out of 7
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A BA spork? Sounds very collectible - I suggest they tether it on a long chain attached to the meal tray to prevent them going astray. Works with pens in the bank.
Jan 23, 2018, 4:28 pm
#36
Join Date: Jun 2015
Location: LHR, LGW
Programs: BAEC
Posts: 3,412
Why are so many posters worried about the carbon footprint of metal cutlery? I thought the plastic argument was all about it not degrading and making its way into the Oceans?
By the way, ironically this means it is not releasing the carbon which makes up that plastic from being emitted as a gas into the atmosphere.
By the way, ironically this means it is not releasing the carbon which makes up that plastic from being emitted as a gas into the atmosphere.
But small steps and at least we are talking about this sort of tiny step (plastic cutlery on BA planes) as this is only a positive move should it ever happen. Yes there are a multitude of other polluting factors involved that have a negative negative contribution but we have to start somewhere. Right?
Jan 23, 2018, 5:00 pm
#38
Join Date: May 2016
Location: London/Frankfurt
Programs: BAEC Gold, Hyatt Gold
Posts: 181
Certain countries are dirty. I'd like to say that I live in a clean country but that's only relatively true. You need only glance at the contents of a Tube carriage to see what I mean. Or for that matter, what the tradesmen leave in my street. The only reason I think I live in a clean country is because we pay people to clean up. People are pigs.
If we are talking about the production, collection and destruction of single-purpose cutlery on flights, as opposed to the cost of supplying heavy steel reusable cutlery, with the considerable costs of cleaning , storing, distributing and carrying it (let alone replacing what's been nicked), the argument's already been made. It's cheaper and easier.
We can eschew the plastic cutlery (which I detest) and carry and burn the extra fuel for a decent knife and fork, burn the coal or gas to heat the water to clean them and pay for the odd sets that get 'lost'. And it won't make a blind bit of difference.
If we are talking about the production, collection and destruction of single-purpose cutlery on flights, as opposed to the cost of supplying heavy steel reusable cutlery, with the considerable costs of cleaning , storing, distributing and carrying it (let alone replacing what's been nicked), the argument's already been made. It's cheaper and easier.
We can eschew the plastic cutlery (which I detest) and carry and burn the extra fuel for a decent knife and fork, burn the coal or gas to heat the water to clean them and pay for the odd sets that get 'lost'. And it won't make a blind bit of difference.
Jan 24, 2018, 12:26 am
#39
Original Poster
Join Date: Jul 2014
Location: Wedged somewhere between BTS and VIE ✈
Programs: Star Alliance Gold (A3 Gold), Oneworld Emerald (BA Gold), Hilton Diamond
Posts: 6,338
If we are talking about the production, collection and destruction of single-purpose cutlery on flights, as opposed to the cost of supplying heavy steel reusable cutlery, with the considerable costs of cleaning , storing, distributing and carrying it (let alone replacing what's been nicked), the argument's already been made. It's cheaper and easier.
We can eschew the plastic cutlery (which I detest) and carry and burn the extra fuel for a decent knife and fork, burn the coal or gas to heat the water to clean them and pay for the odd sets that get 'lost'. And it won't make a blind bit of difference.
We can eschew the plastic cutlery (which I detest) and carry and burn the extra fuel for a decent knife and fork, burn the coal or gas to heat the water to clean them and pay for the odd sets that get 'lost'. And it won't make a blind bit of difference.
I admit I was idly wondering about that. I don't have exact figures to hand, but a quick weigh of some all metal cutlery from the kitchen suggests 70 grams for a knife. Subjectively, it feels a little heftier than the BA metal ones and was definitely a bit larger, so we could perhaps estimate that with good design they could get the average item weight down to 50 grams.
If we also assume per earlier discussion that we have 8 items per pax, that's 400g extra each.
How many pax? 200? Seem a lot as many cabin configs don't hold that many in Y, but lets err on the side of pessimism and take that figure, so total of 400g x 200 = 80Kg, or just about one average Englishman (according to the ONS)
Now...that's very much all back of the envelope stuff, and what I hope someone can fill in is this - what does 80Kg more weight mean in terms of fuel costs?
If we also assume per earlier discussion that we have 8 items per pax, that's 400g extra each.
How many pax? 200? Seem a lot as many cabin configs don't hold that many in Y, but lets err on the side of pessimism and take that figure, so total of 400g x 200 = 80Kg, or just about one average Englishman (according to the ONS)
Now...that's very much all back of the envelope stuff, and what I hope someone can fill in is this - what does 80Kg more weight mean in terms of fuel costs?
Now if we assume that a strong metal teaspoon can weigh 14g, then I think it's safe to say that knives and forks can be produced with around 20g. I reckon that if you had a meal service pack which contained 20g+20g+20g+14g=74g x 2 meal services x 200 passengers, that would give you a total of 29.6kg. Let's not forget that 1,600 items of plastic also have a weight, so the actual difference might be possibly around 29.1kg??
Thinking back to your ultimate question, I'd like to know how much 30kg equates to in terms of extra fuel costs? My guess is it's pretty negligible in terms of overall weight (passengers, luggage, cargo and catering). I can check in a 23kg extra item of luggage on a 2 sector trip for Ł120, so I doubt BA are paying anywhere near that amount for the extra fuel.
50 pence per passenger in extra fuel costs for carrying metal cutlery???
Last edited by headingwest; Jan 24, 2018 at 1:00 am Reason: clarified last question
Jan 26, 2018, 4:07 am
#43
Moderator: British Airways Executive Club
Join Date: Jan 2009
Programs: Battleaxe Alliance
Posts: 22,127
It's a campaign against plastic cutlery on BA, I'd say.
No-one flying BA particularly cares about what the SAS Plus cutlery is made of (FYI it's plastic!) at that particular moment.
Not that I have had any contact with plastic cutlery on BA for a long time - in the days when I flew down the back, it was birdseed, or birdseed, or birdseed - i.e. no cutlery!
I guess no-one ever said they missed the BA birdseed?
No-one flying BA particularly cares about what the SAS Plus cutlery is made of (FYI it's plastic!) at that particular moment.
Not that I have had any contact with plastic cutlery on BA for a long time - in the days when I flew down the back, it was birdseed, or birdseed, or birdseed - i.e. no cutlery!
I guess no-one ever said they missed the BA birdseed?
Jan 26, 2018, 7:19 am
#44
Join Date: Oct 2007
Posts: 4,647