14 DAY TRIAL // McDonald's has announced that, in the months to come, all its outlets in the United States will ditch polystyrene foam cups and start using paper ones instead.
According to Business Green, the company took the decision to green up its working agenda by opting for eco-friendly hot beverages cups after several green groups campaigned against McDonald's use of polystyrene foam containers.
These environmentalists pointed out that, because recycling polystyrene was not exactly a mainstream practice in the US, cups and other containers made from this material often worked their way into the ocean. Once there, they constituted a threat to marine wildlife.
Before being introduced nationwide, the paper cups were trialed in some 2,000 restaurants. By the looks of it, they proved that they could successfully replace polystyrene foam ones.
Conrad MacKerron of advocacy group As You Sow hopes that, in the future, McDonald's will agree to implement other measures intended to reduce its ecological footprint.
“McDonald's has made a great start by phasing out foam. We hope they will also incorporate recycled fibre in the cups and develop on-site systems to collect and recycle food packaging,” the environmentalist reportedly said in a statement.