Macca’s phasing out plastic straws by 2020

A win for the environment. - by Laura Barry

McDonalds has announced that it will phase out plastic straws from its 970 stores in Australia by 2020. The global fast-food giant says the move is part of a long-term global effort by the company to find a sustainable alternative to their single-use straws. McDonalds will be trialling the use of paper straws at two of its Australian stores from August 2018, ahead of a planned nation-wide rollout by 2020. These are the same straws that are currently being trialled by the restaurant chain in the UK.

Getty

The announcement comes fresh off the back of raised awareness around single-use plastic in Australia. Last week Starbucks announced it would be eliminating plastic straws from all its store within two years, and Woolworths has pledged to stop selling plastic straws by the end of 2018. Australians use around 10 million straws every day, according to environmental groups, so this announcement is a win for the environment.

McDonald’s director of supply chain Robert Sexton issued a statement on July 19, 2018 confirming the burger chain’s commitment to ridding its operations of plastic straws, which comes ahead of the ABC’s anti-garbage programme War on Waste episode featuring McDonalds in a particularly unflattering light.

You might also like:

Arnott's have turned your favourite bikkies into cakes

Coles extends free plastic bags

Supermarkets set to make millions on plastic bag ban

Laura Barry

Laura Barry is a writer, bookworm and interior design enthusiast with a love for reporting on all things homes, travel and lifestyle. When not tapping away at her keyboard, Laura can be found making endless cups of tea or perusing the shelves of Sydney’s many bookstores.