![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-canada-stateless\/2020\/06\/47c9189e-screen-shot-2020-06-23-at-4.22.14-pm.png\")
But as time has gone by, and a better understanding of how the virus is spread was gained, we\u2019ve seen more clarity on what\u2019s fact and what\u2019s fiction when it comes to the debate over whether single-use plastic is a more hygienic choice to its reusable alternatives. <\/p>\n\n
What do health experts say?<\/h2>\n\n
Just yesterday, over 100 scientists, physicians, and public health experts from eighteen countries signed a statement<\/a> assuring businesses and their customers that reusables are safe during COVID-19. The health experts \u2014 joined by Greenpeace and UPSTREAM, both members of the Break Free From Plastic movement \u2014 released the statement to stress that disposable products are not inherently safer than reusables and that reusable systems can be utilized safely during the pandemic by employing basic hygiene.<\/p>\n\n Various zero waste and reuse models that have continued to operate during the pandemic have proven that when a company\u2019s business model is designed with the health of people and<\/em> the planet, they are more resilient during times like we\u2019re in now. The stories we\u2019ve been told by the plastic industry, that single-use plastics are here to stay because we need them to protect our products and ourselves, are not science-based.<\/p>\n\n So why has a multinational company with a self-proclaimed green image like Starbucks not gotten creative about moving towards its 2030 <\/strong>100% reusables commitment<\/strong><\/a>? <\/strong><\/p>\n\n It\u2019s a question that\u2019s been on our minds, and those of many of its customers. <\/p>\n\n Starbucks has a massive disposable plastic waste problem. According to the company\u2019s own statements<\/a>, 6 billion disposable cups are distributed by Starbucks each year around the world<\/strong>. We see the evidence of this deplorable plastic footprint overflowing into our community streets and know that the vast majority of these cups are not recycled or composted like the company would like to have you believe. And lots of Starbucks\u2019 cups, lids and other single-use items like straws and stir sticks end up as pollution in the regions where it operates. The company even holds a position on Greenpeace Canada\u2019s 2019 Top 5 Plastic Polluters<\/a> list! Starbucks\u2019 reliance on its customers to drive its reusables strategy and its lack of a company-wide reusables program with proper hygiene protocols, has meant that it is \u2014 and will continue to \u2014 rely on disposables despite its green claims. <\/p>\n\n If Starbucks replaced its disposable cups with a reusable cup-share program and offered contactless coffee to its customers, the company could prevent millions of throwaway plastics from filling landfills and polluting the environment, each week. <\/p>\n\n This is the kind of waste-free solution that could transform our takeout beverage experience! <\/strong>It is doable if Starbucks would just step up and use this moment of change to chart a new course. <\/p>\n\n Join me in urging Starbucks to commit to a company-wide reusable cup-share program to do its part to reduce its impact on the plastic waste and pollution crisis. And in the meantime, in the very least, offer contactless coffee refills for its customers that want their coffee with a dash of a plastic-free future. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n Tell Starbucks we want reusables now!<\/p>\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-canada-stateless\/2020\/06\/171dbede-gp_plastics_reusablesstmt_graphics_0620_iiv2_metadata_1200x600-1024x512.jpg\")
<\/figure>\n\nIs Starbucks that green?<\/h2>\n\n
But Starbucks has just recently reaffirmed that it still won\u2019t allow its customers to dodge its single-use plastic. And even if in the meantime, the company continues to promote and sell reusable cups<\/a>, it won\u2019t allow you to refill them. So it\u2019s just selling more products with no benefit to the environment. <\/p>\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/static\/planet4-canada-stateless\/2020\/06\/9daa49c3-starbucks-trash-can.jpg\")
<\/figure><\/div>\n\nWhat Starbucks should do<\/h2>\n\n