Sluuuuurp! Getting To The Bottom Of The Plastic Straw Debate
By Meha AhmadSluuuuurp! Getting To The Bottom Of The Plastic Straw Debate
By Meha AhmadThere’s a new front in the Straw Wars and it’s taking place at the world’s most popular coffee house chain. This week, Starbucks announced it will phase out its disposable plastic straws in all its 28,000 stores around the world by 2020.
The move follows Seattle’s total ban on plastic straws and utensils amid growing concern and awareness about how these little plastic drinking tubes are wreaking havoc on the environment- specifically our water world.
So how big is the problem? When did plastic straws take over the world? And can they and should they be totally eliminated?
Morning Shift takes a look at the impact the ban could have on businesses going forward.
Research shows that charging people for plastic/disposable cups/straws/bags can be more effective for getting people to remember their own than giving a few cents off when they bring them.
— Kristin Floress (@KristinFloress) July 11, 2018
GUESTS: Jennifer Dunn, research associate professor and director of research for the Northwestern Argonne Institute of Science and Engineering
Megan Kashner, clinical professor of private-public interface and director of social impact for the Kellogg School of Management
LEARN MORE:
A Brief History of How Plastic Straws Took Over the World (National Geographic 7/6/18)
Starbucks Is Ditching Plastic Straws. Here Are 3 of the Most Common Alternatives (Time 7/9/18)