Whole Foods Stores Eliminating Plastic Straws in Stores In a response to customer demands,
Whole Foods has decided to stop offering
plastic straws in all 500 of its stores. The company will now offer paper straws in
their juice bars, coffee bars and cafes, with plastic
straws still available for those with disabilities. Whole Foods claims to be the first
national grocery chain to make this
environmentally friendly change. They’ve also pledged to reduce their plastic
usage in other departments by offering
smaller plastic bags in the produce section, as well as by replacing the hard plastic
cases for their rotisserie chickens
with bags that are 70% less plastic. Whole Foods,
via statement Whole Foods previously made environmentally
conscious changes in 2008 when they stopped
offering disposable plastic bags at checkout. They now only use paper bags and
offer reusable plastic bags for purchase.