Who doesn't love a delicious grande chai latte with oat milk in the morning? And for those who do, the cups might start to look a little different depending on which Starbucks location you visit.
The store is now testing a switch from plastic to paper-based cups at select locations in the U.S. as part of its push for more sustainable packaging. The new cups are lined with a thin layer of bioplastic to prevent leaks, making them more compostable than traditional plastic-lined cups. This change is part of Starbucks’ larger goal to make all of its packaging reusable, recyclable, or compostable by 2030.
The move acknowledges a major issue: most plastic Starbucks cups don’t actually get recycled. While they’re technically recyclable, many waste facilities don’t process them properly, meaning they often end up in landfills. The paper cups offer a more eco-friendly alternative, but their success will depend on whether industrial composting facilities are available in the areas where they’re used.
While some customers worry about durability and the feel of the new cups, Starbucks sees this as a necessary step toward reducing its environmental footprint.
Considering all of the 160,000 tons of plastic cups and plates produced in the U.S. in 2018 —the last year for which federal data is available — about 81 percent was landfilled and 19 percent was burned. That leaves roughly 0 percent for recycling: a “negligible” amount, as the Environmental Protection Agency puts it.
unknownx500
/Passle/60211dc9e5416a0c14bc63d4/SearchServiceImages/2025-12-03-19-31-44-490-69309020a71bd983b528ca6c.jpg)
