Burrito-Ville is following a nationwide trend to ditch the plastic straw. The restaurant announced they’re switching to a compostable straw in an attempt to reduce their footprint on the environment.
500 million straws are tossed away every day in the U.S., and those plastics are breaking down into microplastics which contaminate the ocean, the air, and closer to home, the Mississippi River.
Mary Roberts, spokesman for Burrito-Ville, says the switch will cost them three times what they were paying before per straw, but the benefits to reduce the amount of waste in local landfills outweighed the cost.
“By going compostable, we no longer contribute to this major problem,” says Roberts. “We annually purchase about 84,000 plastic straws, so that will be a huge reduction in waste.”
Roberts says they have been researching for more than a year on how to best join the straw movement, and are one of the first restaurants in the area to use compostable straws. The brand they currently use are plant-based, produced through a non-toxic manufacturing process, and made from annually renewable resources.
This isn’t the first earth-friendly move the restaurant has made: Burrito-Ville has used compostable to-go boxes for years, and introduced 92% biodegradable foam cups last month.
Roberts says they will continue to find new ways to reduce waste through changes at the restaurant in the future.