Today Starbucks has just announced plans to eliminating plastic straws globally by 2020. It is predicted that by doing so, Starbucks will eliminate more than 1 billion plastic straws per year. As Starbucks is one of the biggest contributors to plastic waste, for them to be the largest food and beverage retailer to make such a commitment will hopefully inspire other brands to do so too – regardless of the cost.

Starbucks has re-designed their packaging and have ave developed a strawless lid, in which customers can already get in 8,000+ stores in the US and Canada. This lid is also available for Nitro beverages and in additional markets including China, Singapore, Thailand, Japan and Vietnam. The company will begin to introduce offerings of straws made from alternative materials such as paper or compostable plastic. Starbucks located in Vancouver and Seattle will be the first to see these changes happening in the fall, before launching in other markets.

For more information visit Starbucks Newsroom.