Single-serve coffee container

They can also help to keep the unused product fresher by individually packaging portions separately without exposing the entire supply batch to air and light.

The capsules have an outer ring or rim that stays dry during use, allowing for removal and disposal after use without getting the user's hands wet or sticky.

In food service businesses, pods and capsules used with automatic brewing can help to provide consistency of product strength and flavor for customers.

Paper coffee pods such as those used in Easy Serving Espresso Pod or Senseo machines have the benefit of being a fully biodegradable product that can decompose naturally, while plastic and metal capsules such as those used in Keurig or Nespresso machines either are not recyclable, or require additional processing to separate the plastic/metal container from the organic waste products.

In early 2016 the German city of Hamburg banned coffee capsules from state-run buildings on environmental grounds.