Disney will get rid of single-use plastic straws and stirrers at all Walt Disney Company properties around the world by next year. The initiative includes all parks except for Disney Tokyo. This will reduce more than 175 million straws and 13 million stirrers annually, the company said.
The company follows the lead of Starbucks, which announced earlier this month that they would eliminate single-use plastic straws from its 28,000 stores by 2020.
The US alone uses 500 million straws a day. Straws are also the 11th most found type of trash in the ocean. Also, straws are usually non-recyclable and take more than 200 years to decompose.
“Eliminating plastic straws and other plastic items are meaningful steps in our long-standing commitment to environmental stewardship,” said Bob Chapek, Chairman, Disney Parks, Experiences, and Consumer Products. “These new global efforts help reduce our environmental footprint, and advance our long-term sustainability goals.”
Disney has also announced other measures for its hotels and cruise ships. The company is hoping to do away with in-room amenities to reduce the use of plastic 80 percent. They will instead provide refillable containers. Also, guests will be offered the option of buying reusable bags in an effort to reduce single-use plastic shopping bags in shops at resorts and on cruises.
“Disney has always been inspired by nature -- and it is a uniquely powerful brand that inspires, educates, and entertains, all at the same time,” said Dr. M. Sanjayan, CEO of Conservation International, a non-profit with Disney works with on environmental and sustainability initiatives.
“Today’s announcement is more than about reducing single-use plastic waste, it’s also about showing millions of kids and adults from around the world the many ways we can change our daily habits to care for the oceans and protect nature that sustains us all," Sanjayan said. "It also builds on Disney’s longstanding commitment to conservation and environmental stewardship, a legacy that stretches from the highlands of Peru to the islands of the South Pacific.”
Other companies that have announced changes include McDonald's, which has announced that it will eliminate plastic straws at restaurant locations in the UK and Ireland starting in September. Vail Resorts, owner of Northstar, Heavenly and Kirkwood at Lake Tahoe and sister resorts in Colorado, Utah, British Columbia, Vermont and the Midwest, has also prohibited the use of plastic straws.
RELATED: Starbucks To Replace Plastic Straws With ‘Sippy Cups’ By 2020
Despite the impact of plastic straws on the environment, their burden is still minimal, considering that they only make up 3% of the trash recovered from oceans. According to the organization For A Strawless Ocean, "We want to encourage people to stop using plastic straws for good. If we don’t act now, by the year 2050 there will be more plastic in the ocean than fish."