None of Starbucks' 'Widely Recyclable' Cups Ended Up at a Recycling Facility
A recent investigation by Beyond Plastics revealed that none of Starbucks' tracked 'widely recyclable' cold cups ended up at recycling facilities. Instead, the cups were found in landfills and incinerators, contradicting the company's claims about their recyclability. The findings raise concerns about the effectiveness of Starbucks' recycling initiatives and the environmental impact of its plastic waste.
- ▪Beyond Plastics tracked 53 Starbucks cold beverage cups and found that none reached a recycling facility.
- ▪The investigation showed that the cups ended up in landfills, incinerators, and waste-transfer stations.
- ▪Starbucks has been promoting its polypropylene cups as 'widely recyclable,' despite the low actual recycling rates for such plastics.
Opening excerpt (first ~120 words) tap to expand
Beyond Plastics Tracked Starbucks’ ‘Widely Recyclable’ Plastic Cups. None Ended Up at a Recycling Facility. May 20 Written By Melissa Valliant Electronic Bluetooth Trackers Placed in Starbucks’ In-Store Recycling Bins Followed the Polypropylene Cups to Landfills and IncineratorsFor Immediate Release: May 20, 2026Contacts: Melissa Valliant, Beyond Plastics — [email protected], (410) 829-0726Judith Enck, Beyond Plastics — [email protected], (518) 605-1770A three-month national investigation by Beyond Plastics found that not a single tracked Starbucks cold-beverage cup ended up at a recycling facility — even when the cups were placed in clearly marked recycling bins inside Starbucks stores.
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Excerpt limited to ~120 words for fair-use compliance. The full article is at Beyond Plastics - Working To End Single-Use Plastic Pollution.
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