“The last plastic straw”: McDonald’s Canada introduces fiber-based guest packaging nationwide

13 Oct 2021 --- McDonald’s Canada is introducing wooden stir sticks, paper straws and wooden cutlery – excluding McFlurry spoons – to its 1,400 restaurants nationwide by December 2021.

Wooden stir sticks are currently being rolled out in restaurants, with wooden cutlery and paper straws to follow this month. The “last plastic straw” is expected to be used by the end of the year.

“Serving close to three million guests every day, McDonald’s Canada is playing an important role in the ongoing reduction of single-use plastics in the country,” says Rob Dick, supply chain officer, McDonald’s Canada.

McDonald’s aims to support its global commitment to source all its primary guest packaging from renewable, recycled or certified sources by replacing these single-use plastics in its restaurants. By 2030, the fast-food giant expects to prevent approximately 150 million metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions from being released into the atmosphere through this transition.

The primary guest packaging refers to products used to package guest food on premises at McDonald’s restaurants, including containers, cups, wraps, bags for food, drink carriers, napkins and Happy Meal boxes.

McDonald’s Canada’s “last plastic straw” is expected to be used in December 2021.Green pressure grows
McDonald’s Canada estimates it will remove approximately 840 tons of plastics from the Canadian system annually, based on 2018-2020 data, by removing plastic cutlery, stir sticks and straws from its restaurants.

In 2019, McDonald’s Canada introduced a 20% smaller napkin in its restaurants, produced with 100% recycled fiber, eliminating more than 900 metric tons of paper from the Canadian system.

This year, global investors have increased the pressure on quick-service restaurants (QSR) to reduce their greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.

Five out of six fast-food brands managing over 100,000 restaurants worldwide are now setting tangible science-based targets (SBTs) aligned with the UN Paris Agreement’s primary goal to keep global warming below 2°C, or are planning to set them.

These include McDonald’s, Yum! Brands – owner of KFC, Pizza Hut and Taco Bell – Chipotle, Domino’s and Wendy’s, up from just two brands last year (McDonald’s and Yum! Brands).

Previous paper pushes
The news arrives as the latest of McDonald’s global initiatives to reduce single-use plastic waste, which is being legally restricted worldwide.

Most recently, McDonald’s launched an initiative to reduce virgin fossil fuel-based plastic in its Happy Meal toys by 90% worldwide by the end of 2025. The fast-food giant will transition to more renewable, recycled or certified materials for toys.

The fast-food giant commits to sourcing its primary guest packaging from renewable, recycled or certified sources.Meanwhile, McDonald’s Germany tested a move from paperboard clamshells to paper wrappings for its burger products in August, which the company says could potentially save up to 70% packaging material.

“Revolutionary” reusables?
This July, McDonald’s began piloting a reusable coffee cup scheme in partnership with TerraCycle’s reusable packaging service, Loop, to reduce single-use waste to landfills. In a global first for the fast-food giant, six McDonald’s locations in England will introduce returnable cups that are cleaned and reused.

Innova Market Insights pegged “Reusable Revolution” as a top packaging trend for 2021, noting that a majority of global consumers (52%) believe reusable packaging is the most sustainable model, followed by recyclable (50%) and recycled (39%), biodegradable (31%) and compostable (24%) (2021).

However, a recent study revealed transitioning in-store QSR dining to reusable tableware would be equivalent to adding one million petrol cars to Europe’s roads.

Nevertheless, not all studies have come to the same conclusions. Last year, a multi-university environmental study in China found reusable takeout packaging environmentally favorable to paper-based alternatives.

By Anni Schleicher

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