Starbucks is redesigning its cold drink plastic cups as part of its bid to trim its environmental footprint in half by 2030, the company said in a statement on Thursday.
The coffee chain said the new cups will use up to 20% less plastic than its previous ones and will all use the same size lid, which will simplify storage.
Starbucks said the lineup will debut at select locations in the U.S. and Canada, with plans for a full rollout by spring 2025.
The new cups, which were designed internally, are “projected to reduce emissions and conserve water in the production process.” More notably, Starbucks said the new cups “cost less to make,” and will keep over 13.5 million pounds of plastic from being dumped at landfills each year. The coffee maker has been aiming to reduce its environmental footprint for quite some time. In 2020, it stopped using plastic straws for its cold drink cups in exchange for plastic lids.
With the new cups, the company is predicting it will be able to streamline its workflow, in part because the new cups will have added features, such as “embossed” letters, which will help baristas more easily “confirm the size they’re grabbing during a busy rush,” it said.
Starbucks has been on a revamp wave. Earlier this month, it said would be making some serious renovations to a number of its stores in effort to get orders right and help customers with hearing loss. In March, it said it would continue to offer its pup cups and water for free.