Live Nation to Switch to Reusable Cups at Events to Reduce Waste

Sustainability continues to be a priority for live events organizers, as they increasingly look to find solutions that will make a real impact. This can be tricky to accomplish as many initiatives end up being largely performative and don’t achieve the intended results.

Live Nation has announced that it has invested in and will begin utilizing TURN Systems’ reusable cups and collection bins at its venues and events to work towards its goal to eliminate single-use plastics, which has the potential to make a difference if it’s used properly.

Live Nation previously invested in Liquid Death water, which comes in aluminum cans, to reduce plastic waste at events, and this new initiative will hopefully help further that goal. The company notes that a single reusable TURN cup can replace up to 100            disposable cups

Live Nation events will in many ways be a testing ground for this type of program, which may be adopted by other event organizers if successful. The challenge with reusable event materials of any kind is getting fans to actually follow the correct procedures — it’s very likely, at least in the beginning, that many cups will be mistakenly thrown out by fans who aren’t paying attention.

To help with this, TURN also includes an app that can rewards fans for returning cups at events. There is also early evidence of success with the program, which was recently deployed at Bonnaroo, where fans returned 88 percent of cups. The system also comes with efficient mobile washing stations so that cups can be cleaned onsite and easily reused.

“We know that live music goers are motivated to engage in sustainable practices at live events, and so we want to make sure we’re providing sustainable options for fans that are easily accessible and convenient to use,” said Lucy August-Perna, Director of Global Sustainability.

“With our investment in TURN, we will use our venues and festivals to demonstrate the effectiveness of large-scale reuse programs with the hopes of inspiring more rapid adoption of solutions that tackle the global waste and plastic pollution challenge.”

TURN systems will be rolled out at more Live Nation festivals and venues this year, including at Lollapalooza and Austin City Limits. They are projected to displace over 1 million single-use cups this year.