Starbucks wasn’t looking for a solution to the plastic straw problem, but it found one when it began developing a new lid for its Nitro Cold Brew in 2016. Now, Starbucks will stop using plastic straws entirely at all 30,000 of its international locations by 2020, reports Fast Company.
The Nitro Cold Brew’s biggest selling point would be its creamy, frothy top, but cold brews are typically drunk through straws, meaning they’re consumed from the bottom up. The solution was a strawless lid that Starbucks tested at its Seattle locations. A lightbulb went on when the company realized this disposable sippy cup-looking lid also solved another problem that went well beyond the needs of a new brew.
Source: IGN.com Starbucks Will No Longer Use Plastic Straws by 2020