Primary school helps Müller remove plastic straws

In Glasgow school children at Sunnyside Primary School have been helping Müller to become the first dairy company in the UK to offer fresh school milk with paper straws.

The school contacted the company, presenting their concerns about the environmental impact of plastic straws in 2018.

The school accepted an offer to work with the dairy company to trial Müller’s new paper straw, which is attached to their recyclable school milk cartons.

Müller has now committed to removing all plastic straws from its products by 2020 and since 2016 the company has removed 10,000 tonnes of plastic from Müller Milk bottles.  

Müller’s new paper straw is fully recyclable and has been developed in partnership with Tetra Pak over the last 18 months and is made from Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certified paperboard.

The company is currently undertaking further trials at its Bridgwater site, using the new paper straws.

If successful, Bridgwater will begin the permanent roll out of the paper straws by the end of March 2020.

Müller’s other school milk producing sites would follow by the end of 2020, eliminating 48 tonnes of plastic every year.

Gareth Budd, Head of Customer Innovation at Müller Milk & Ingredients said:

“The pupils at Sunnyside Primary School have a real passion for positive change, and were an inspiration. We thank them for their valued participation in the trial, and now we’re fully focused on removing all plastic straws from our school milk by the end of 2020.”

Charles Brand, President of Tetra Pak Europe & Central Asia added:

“It is important that we launch a sustainable paper straw that is fully functional, recyclable and does not compromise on food safety. We also recognise our responsibility to provide sustainable solutions to our customers that will enable us, as a collective, to move towards a low carbon circular economy.

“We believe this trial is a fantastic way to truly test and receive feedback, and it’s great to receive such a positive reaction to using the new paper straws. We are happy to work together with Müller to roll out paper straws and help them realise their commitment to drive down plastic.”