McDonald's has announced it will phase out plastic straws in all its UK restaurants by 2019, following a petition signed by nearly half a million people. The fast-food chain, which uses approximately 1.8 million straws daily in the UK, will replace them with paper alternatives sourced from suppliers in Northern Ireland and Wales.
The decision affects all 1,361 McDonald's outlets in the UK but not its other 36,000 restaurants worldwide. The change follows a trial at selected outlets over the past two months and comes amid growing public concern over plastic pollution harming seabirds and marine life.
Paul Pomroy, CEO of McDonald's UK and Ireland, said the company had listened to customer feedback. "Reflecting the broader public debate, our customers told us they wanted to see a move on straws but to do so without compromising their overall experience," he explained.
Initially, only a limited number of restaurants will have recycling facilities for the paper straws, but McDonald's has committed to ensuring all stores can recycle them by the end of 2019. The government has previously warned that plastic straws could be banned as part of efforts to cut marine pollution.
McDonald's joins other high street names such as Costa Coffee, Wetherspoons, and Pizza Express in replacing plastic straws. Waitrose has stopped selling them, and Wimbledon now serves Pimms with paper straws. Trials for alternatives are also planned in the US, France, Sweden, and Norway later this year.
