1. They’re cute! They come in all different colors, styles, and sizes such as hard plastic, metal, silicon, bamboo, or even ones that bend to fit in a pocket! They can vary in size to have a smaller sized one that makes drinking water or coffee a breeze or one with a bigger hole that makes smoothie (or even boba) drinking easy!
2. They will save you money! Some people will buy regular disposable plastic straws in bulk for their YETI or smoothies. With a few reusable straws to match every drinking style, one would never have to buy regular disposable straws every again! (look for organizations on campus handing them out, there are a ton!) They are also super easy to clean! Most cases, when buying a pack there will be a straw cleaner included but if not, use a pipe cleaner and some dish soap and BAM, clean straw!
3. They are NOT recyclable. Most disposable straws are made of a plastic that cannot be recycled so they all end up in the landfill and then eventually into our environment! Opt out for a paper straw if necessary or ask to be served a drink without a straw. Thankfully Starbucks and Disney (a good excuse to buy those Mickey Mouse straws) plan to get rid of all their straws within the upcoming years so by respectfully declining a straw can draw other businesses to do the same, especially at bars! Those little black straws count too!
4. They hurt the environment! Nobody likes to see those sad pictures of animals getting caught on plastic, especially that video of a turtle with a straw in their nose. Unfortunately, our oceans are highly polluted with plastic and straws are a pretty common item that is picked up at beach cleanups. There are a ton of animals that get washed up on shore because they mistakenly ate plastic that was in the water. Animals can’t “clean up” their homes like us, so let’s help them by reducing the number of plastic straws one uses. The more we reuse straws, the fewer animals get hurt!
5. It’s trendy! When others see you using a pretty looking reusable straw they will want to get one. Look good, feel good knowing you are helping the world by reusing straws in a sustainable way!! It is also fun to brag about “how many cute straws I have” Hop on the trend!
“It’s only one straw!”
– Said 8 billion people