Hot drink cups

Paper cups whose plastic-free claim can be checked

Four walls to choose from and three coatings to choose between — but on the water-based range the plastic-free statement is not our adjective, it is a licence number held in our own name. Licence FPPC025, ≥99.25% plastic-free by product weight, valid to May 2031.

Specifications Ask about a claim

Formats: 4
Dimensioned sizes: 13
Barrier options: 3
Certification: flustix FPPC025

What makes a paper cup either simple or complicated

A hot cup is board, a seam, a rolled rim and a barrier. The first three decide whether the cup leaks. The fourth decides everything else — what you may print on it, which waste stream it lands in, and how it is classified for extended producer responsibility fees.

That barrier is where the industry splits. A polyethylene film is cheap, food-safe and makes the cup a composite material. A water-based dispersion coats the same board without plastic, which is why it is the only construction in this range that can carry a plastic-free claim. PLA sits between the two: it composts industrially, but PLA is itself a bioplastic, so a PLA cup is compostable and still not plastic-free. We keep those three sentences separate on purpose — most suppliers do not.

Formats and dimensions

Every size below is a tooled size held in this range. Dimensions are nominal — confirm tolerances before artwork or lid tooling is committed.

Single wall paper cups

The standard hot-cup construction: one board wall, one coated surface. Available from 4oz espresso to 20oz.

Water-based dispersion Plastic-free claim supportable — covered by flustix FPPC025 on the water-based range.
PLA (compostable bioplastic) Compostable under EN 13432 in industrial conditions. PLA is a bioplastic, so it is not plastic-free.
PE (conventional) Conventional polyethylene barrier. Not part of any plastic-free claim.

Mingkai paper packaging single wall paper cups — product view

Mingkai paper packaging single wall paper cups — detail

Size	Top Ø (mm)	Bottom Ø (mm)	Height (mm)	Packing (pcs × bags)
4oz	62	46	58	50 × 20
6oz	72	50	78	50 × 20
6.5oz	70	48	81	100 × 25
7.5oz	70	47	92	100 × 25
8oz	80	56	92	50 × 20
10oz	90	60	95	50 × 20
12oz	90	58	110	50 × 20
16oz	90	60	136	50 × 20
20oz	90	60	150	50 × 20

Packing = pieces per bag × bags per carton. Nominal dimensions; confirm tolerances before tooling artwork.

Used for Coffee · Tea · Hot chocolate · Soup portions

Double wall paper cups

A second board sleeve bonded to the body — insulation without a separate sleeve, and a printable outer surface on both layers.

Water-based dispersion Plastic-free claim supportable — covered by flustix FPPC025 on the water-based range.
PLA (compostable bioplastic) Compostable under EN 13432 in industrial conditions. PLA is a bioplastic, so it is not plastic-free.
PE (conventional) Conventional polyethylene barrier. Not part of any plastic-free claim.

Mingkai paper packaging double wall paper cups — product view

Mingkai paper packaging double wall paper cups — detail

Size	Top Ø (mm)	Bottom Ø (mm)	Height (mm)	Packing (pcs × bags)
4oz	63	46	62	25 × 20
8oz	80	57	92	25 × 20

Intermediate sizes are produced to order; the two rows above are the tooled sizes held in the current range.

Used for Espresso · Flat white · Tea

Ripple wall paper cups

Corrugated outer wrap for high-heat drinks and delivery — the ridge pattern gives grip and a premium shelf look.

Water-based dispersion Plastic-free claim supportable — covered by flustix FPPC025 on the water-based range.
PE (conventional) Conventional polyethylene barrier. Not part of any plastic-free claim.

Mingkai paper packaging ripple wall paper cups — product view

Mingkai paper packaging ripple wall paper cups — detail

Size	Top Ø (mm)	Bottom Ø (mm)	Height (mm)	Packing (pcs × bags)
8oz	80	57	92	25 × 20
12oz	90	60	110	25 × 20

Ripple pitch and flute depth are fixed per tooling; colour of the outer wrap is matched to your artwork.

Used for Coffee to go · Delivery drinks · Hot chocolate

Embossed paper cups

A debossed or embossed pattern pressed into the board — texture instead of ink, often used where a matte-laminate look is wanted.

PE (conventional) Conventional polyethylene barrier. Not part of any plastic-free claim.

Mingkai paper packaging embossed paper cups — product view

Mingkai paper packaging embossed paper cups — detail

Dimensioned on request — this format is quoted from your drawing or sample rather than from a fixed size table.

Pattern depth and repeat are set by embossing die; sizes follow the single wall range above.

Used for Coffee · Ice cream · Retail gift sets

How a hot cup is classified in Europe

Three questions a buyer will be asked, and what we can hand over for each.

Is it plastic-free, and who says so?

Only the water-based range. The statement rests on flustix certification FPPC025 — holder Changsha Mingkai Paper Product Co., Ltd., tested by Wessling GmbH, ≥99.25% plastic-free by product weight. The licence is publicly searchable, which is the point: your customer can check it without asking us.

Does it meet the 5% rule for paper recycling?

PPWR treats fibre-based packaging with no more than 5% non-paper content as recyclable in the paper stream, with lower EPR fees than composites. The water-based build is designed around that threshold; a PE-lined cup is not, because the film is a plastic layer by definition rather than a coating residue.

What documents come with the order?

Declaration of conformity, migration test report against EU 10/2011 and GB 4806.8, composition statement by weight, and the flustix licence reference. Issued per order with dates and version numbers — see the file set page for what each one covers.

Three mistakes we see in cup specifications

Describing a PLA cup as plastic-free. PLA is a bioplastic; the correct claim is industrially compostable under EN 13432, not plastic-free.
Quoting a cup by volume alone. Two 12oz cups can differ by 10mm in top diameter, which decides whether your existing lid fits.
Putting the flustix mark on a cup that is outside the certified range. The licence names the products and the coating system it covers.

Where this format is used

Coffee shops and roasters

Single, double and ripple wall across a menu that runs from 4oz espresso to 20oz filter.

QSR and delivery

Ripple wall for heat retention in transit, with 80mm and 90mm lid formats to match.

Offices and vending

Single wall in mid sizes, where the cup is used once and disposed of on site.

Retail and gifting

Embossed and printed formats where the cup is part of the product presentation.

Questions buyers ask about this range

Is the flustix certificate in Mingkai’s name or the factory’s?

In Mingkai’s name — Changsha Mingkai Paper Product Co., Ltd., licence FPPC025. Manufacturing is carried out by the group’s production entity, but the certification holder and the party answerable for the claim is Mingkai.

Can the cup be both plastic-free and compostable?

They are separate certifications. A water-based cup can be plastic-free without being certified compostable, and a PLA cup can be EN 13432 compostable without being plastic-free. If you need both statements, they need two documents.

Do you print the cups?

Printing and customisation are handled by our sister site kysonpack.com, which runs the same production base. This site stays on materials, certification and documentation.

What is the smallest order?

From 50,000 pieces on standard cup sizes, 25-day production. Below that, stock white cups are usually the better route.

The flustix licence

Number, holder, scope and how to verify it in the public database.

The document set

Every file issued with a cup order, and what each one proves.

PPWR and EmpCo

The two rules that make a plastic-free claim either an asset or an exposure.

Cold and dessert cups

Iced drinks, ice cream, sauce portions, soufflé cups.

Printing and customisation live on our sister site

Artwork, print, die-line changes and volume pricing are handled by kysonpack.com, which runs the same production base. This site stays on materials, certification and documentation — so the answer you get here is about what can be evidenced, not what can be printed.

Printing & customisation → All product formats

Send us the claim you need to defend

Product form, target market, intended claim. Three lines are enough for us to tell you which documents exist and which have to be obtained.

We check whether a certificate or report exists for that exact product.

You get the document list, including the gaps.

If a claim cannot be evidenced, we say so before price is discussed.