Starbucks will allow reusable cups for drive-thrus, mobile orders

Starbucks is allowing customers to use personal cups when ordering at drive-thru windows and on its app in a bid to cut down on waste. 

Effective immediately, customers who bring their reusable cups when ordering in-store, at the drive-thru or through the app at any location throughout the U.S. and Canada are eligible for a 10-cent discount on each cup. Previously, the company only allowed customers the option to bring their cups when ordering in-store.

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The company bills itself as the first major retailer to offer a reusable cup service with mobile orders.

"Offering customers more options to use a personal cup when they visit Starbucks marks tangible progress towards the future," Starbucks Chief Sustainability Officer Michael Kobori said. 

With the app, customers are instructed to hit the "Customization" button and then select "Personal Cup" in the menu before ordering. 

For the drive-thru, a customer needs to let the barista know that they brought their own cup when ordering. Baristas will collect customers’ personal cups at the pickup window without the lid, using a "contactless vessel," according to the company. 

It's just one of several ways the fast food and quick service industry is moving to a more sustainable future. 

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In October, McDonald’s announced that it was getting rid of the hollowed-out, square-shaped McFlurry spoon to become more sustainable. The company said the switch is part of how it is redesigning some of its most "iconic products" to cut back on unnecessary waste and transition to more sustainable materials.

The company previously pledged to transition from virgin fossil fuel-based plastics in its primary guest packaging to 100% renewable, recycled or certified sources by the end of 2025. 

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Similarly, Restaurant Brands International, the owner of Burger King, Tim Hortons, Popeyes and Firehouse Subs, pledged to recycle guest packaging in restaurants globally by 2025, where viable. 

Earlier this year, Chipotle announced that it was testing out a new sustainable restaurant design.

The all-new electric restaurant design, according to the company, maximizes energy efficiency in its equipment and systems while also utilizing "100% renewable energy from wind power and solar through the purchase of certified renewable energy credits."