Back in 2008, Starbucks started implementing the use of reusable cups and tumblers in their stores. They set out to make 5% of all their beverages made in stores in personal tumblers by 2015. By 2011, they had reached almost 2% of their goal, saving more than 1.5 million pounds of paper from landfills. Each year these numbers keep growing — check out the annual reports.
Starbucks makes constant strides towards reducing their environmental footprint without losing the quality of their service. They started with the invention of the hot cup sleeve, eliminating the double cup practice. Soon after, they remanufactured their cups with 10% post-consumer recycled fiber, the first of its kind to be approved by the U.S. FDA. In 2018, they introduced the “nitro-lid,” a recyclable strawless lid, in order to wean out plastic straws from their stores by 2020, eliminating more than 1 billion straws per year. (Pro tip: when ordering in stores “for here” ask for a ceramic mug instead).
So these reusable cups and tumblers.. tell me more.
The reusable cups and tumblrs come at economic prices ranging from $0.99 to $30. Additionally, Starbucks offers their customers a discount of $0.10 per drink, each time you use a reusable cup. The cup pays for itself in 10 uses and you will have saved 10 cups! Plastic straws take over 200 years to break down, and Americans use over 500,000,000 plastic straws daily. These numbers are crazy high! Not only will you be helping reduce the waste and these numbers, but you will be doing it in style. Starbucks has some seriously cute designs that make you want to buy them anyway. I bought my own venti reusable cup for $2.99, with a gorgeous mermaid design on it. All of these options are recyclable, so when it comes time to replace your old cup due to wear and tear, recycle it and get another for just $1.
For additional information and tips, visit these links for goal progress or cups and materials!