Starbucks sets 2030 targets for plastic and waste reduction
Starbucks has released a public letter to all its company stakeholders, which sets out its targets for 2030 related to carbon, water, and waste.
The company’s aspiration is to become more resource positive, by storing more carbon than it emits, eliminating waste, and providing more fresh water than it uses.
One key strategy being looked at by Starbucks is shifting from single-use to reusable packaging, while it is also looking at investing in better ways to manage waste, both in stores and in communities, to ensure more reuse, recycling, and elimination of food waste.
Kevin Johnson, CEO of Starbucks, said: “As we approach the 50th anniversary of Starbucks in 2021, we are looking ahead with a heightened sense of urgency and conviction that we must challenge ourselves, think bigger, and do much more in partnership with other to take care of the planet we share.”
Sander Defruyt, Lead of the New Plastics Economy initiative at the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, said: “The New Plastics Economy Global Commitment unites businesses, governments, and others behind a clear vision for a world where plastic never becomes waste or pollution, and the ambitious targets required to achieve it.”
“Creating this circular economy for plastics will be challenging journey, but by signing the Global Commitment, Starbucks is joining forces with more than 450 signatories to make it possible.”
“We urge others to join them. By coming together, we can eliminate to plastics we don’t need and innovate, so the plastics we do need can be safely and easily circulated, keeping them in the economy and out of the environment.”