Starbucks will phase out plastic straws by 2020
The people have spoken, and they're sick of plastic straws.
Starbucks is moving to eradicate sustainability's enemy No. 1 by 2020, the coffee chain announced Monday, revealing that it will phase out straws in favor of sippy cup-like lids. The move comes after Starbucks' birthplace of Seattle officially banned plastic straws, and the company says this will save more than 1 billion straws from the landfill.
Starbucks first unveiled the new lids in 2016, using them on foam-topped drinks in just one Seattle store. The lipped lid now lets customers sip cold foam off Nitro drinks in most North American shops, per the announcement. By 2020, every iced drink except Frappuccinos will be served strawless, while Frappucinos will come with either paper or composted plastic straws made from plant material.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Additionally, any customer will be able to request a sustainable straw for any drink. Starbucks is currently testing the new straws in the U.K.
The new lids are made of plastic, Starbucks' packaging director acknowledges — but unlike straws, these lids can be recycled. Hot coffee drinkers can note that Starbucks has invested $10 million in developing a recyclable and compostable cup to replace its current wax-lined version. In the meantime, the company is charging paper cup users in London a bit extra to encourage them to bring reusable tumblers.
We'll drink to that.
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Kathryn is a graduate of Syracuse University, with degrees in magazine journalism and information technology, along with hours to earn another degree after working at SU's independent paper The Daily Orange. She's currently recovering from a horse addiction while living in New York City, and likes to share her extremely dry sense of humor on Twitter.
-
Reddit IPO values social media site at $6.4 billion
Speed Read The company makes its public debut on the New York Stock Exchange
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Housing costs: the root of US economic malaise?
speed read Many voters are troubled by the housing affordability crisis
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Feds cap credit card late fees at $8
speed read The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau finalized a rule to save households an estimated $10 billion a year
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Immigration helped the US economy outpace peers
speed read The U.S. economy grew at an annualized rate of 3.2% last quarter
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
4-day workweek gets boost from UK study
Speed Read Following a six-month trial, the majority of participating British companies are still using the truncated schedule
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
US sues to block Kroger-Albertsons merger
Speed Read The Federal Trade Commission sued to block the $24.6 billion merger between the grocery giants
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Nvidia sees historic stock rise on AI chips success
Speed Read U.S. chipmaker Nvidia achieved the biggest one-day increase in value of any company in history
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
New York may seize Trump's assets for $450M penalty
Speed Read The former president likely owes $600 million from two civil judgments in New York
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published