Sip on this: McDonald’s is testing new, strawless lids in an effort to reduce the use of small plastics.
The company’s marketing personnel told Nexstar the testing of strawless lids will take place in select U.S. markets. The lids are for cold beverages only.
McDonald’s is so far keeping a lid on which markets will see the new tops, but a staffer for Nexstar’s WGN said they received one in the Chicago area.
“These lids help optimize our packaging and eliminate the use of small plastics, just one example of the many solutions we’re reviewing as part of our ongoing global commitment to reduce waste across restaurants and advance recycling,” McDonald’s stated.
In September 2020, Starbucks announced after a successful year of trialing its strawless lids, that they would be rolled out to company-operated and licensed stores.
Starbucks stated the move was done in an effort to “eliminate one billion plastic straws globally per year.”
The transition to strawless lids is the latest effort by McDonald’s to reduce plastic waste. According to the McDonald’s website, 82.7% of their primary packaging material comes from recycled or certified sources. McDonald’s aims to have “100% certified, recycled or renewable materials” by 2025.
According to McDonald’s, the testing of the strawless lids are currently being conducted in select restaurants in the upper Midwest.
Originally reported by KTLA sister station KVEO.