Earth is Lovin’ It: Georgia McDonald’s pilots biobased cups

In Savanah, Georgia, McDonald’s is testing cups made from equal parts recycled materials and biobased plastic made from the company’s own used cooking oil. 

Twenty-eight franchises in the city will be testing the cups, which they claim are nearly identical to cups made from virgin fossil-based plastics.  The pilot is part of the fast food megachain’s efforts to source all of its packaging from renewable or recycled sources by 2025. 

“We know that plastic packaging can provide the food safety and performance our customers expect from their McDonald’s experience, but we also believe that plastic pollution is an issue we all need to help address,” McDonald’s says in a statement. “Ultimately, this test signals to the industry that McDonald’s—one of the world’s largest restaurant companies—is serious about supporting the production of biobased and recycled materials.”

The cups, which are also recyclable, were born out of a collaboration with TMS-HAVI, Pactiv Evergreen, Neste, INEOS and LyondellBasell.