Just as noteworthy as what they're carrying is what they are not: the disposable Starbucks cup, an icon in a world where the word is overused. Political Cartoons View All 1160 ImagesNow, in an era where concern for sustainability can be good business, the Starbucks disposable cup may be on its way to extinction thanks to an unlikely force: Starbucks itself. At the store where Patton gets her coffee, Starbucks already doesn't serve any in disposable paper or plastic cups. That pushes the limits of what can be done with recycled paper material that holds hot liquids. Since the reintroduction of reusable cups in some stores in July 2021 — reusable cups were not used during much of the COVID-19 pandemic — only 1.2% of worldwide sales in fiscal year 2022 came from reusables.

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Persons: — Bethany Patton, Patton, ”, that's, Michael Kobori, It’s, Erin Simon, Simon, Jon Solorzano, ” Solorzano, “ I’ll, Irene Linayao, Aria, Tyler Eglen, Jane Tsilas, Kyle Walker, Valencia Villanueva, it's, “, Peter Prengaman, Manuel Valdes Organizations: Arizona State University ., Starbucks, Wildlife Fund, Arizona State, Starbucks —, AS, Valencia, Associated Press, AP Locations: TEMPE, Ariz, United States, Los Angeles, Europe, Germany, San Francisco, San Diego, Seattle, Arizona, reusables