Starbucks is celebrating Earth Month with the rollout of an improved version of its single-use cold cup that will aim to reduce waste by 10-20% – keeping 13.5m pounds of plastic from landfills in the US and Canada each year at no additional cost.

The cups are made with up to 20% less plastic and support Starbucks’ commitment to cut its carbon, water, and waste footprints in half by 2030.

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They’re inspired by feedback from store partners, and partners with low vision helped directly inform the features to make the cup more accessible. Most importantly, this includes a universal lid for the tall, grande and venti cups to aid the work of Starbucks baristas.

The cups will be launched in April 2024 in select stores across the US and Canada, with a full rollout completed through the course of this year. 

Above all, Starbucks encourages its customers to bring their own cups from home. As the company continues to drive consumer behaviour change on reusables, the latest results show nearly 200,000 more Starbucks beverages were purchased with a personal cup than last year in the same period.

Other sustainable packaging initiatives from Starbucks include accepting reusable cups for drive-through and mobile orders, eliminating single-use plastic lid stoppers in favour of recyclable lid stickers, and replacing single-use plastic straws with straws made with compostable material or paper.

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