In an effort to beat plastic pollution boffins at Starbucks have been hard at work trying to make a disposable cup that does the same job as their plastic-coated ones - just without the plastic.
And they now think they might have cracked it - with a new trial of a fully recyclable and compostable paper cup in the UK and beyond.
That means customers at select stores in London, Seattle, San Francisco, New York and Vancouver will be handed the re-engineered drinking receptacle to see if anyone notices, cares or has problems with it.
"The cups will look almost identical to the usual Starbucks paper cups, with the aim being that customers won’t be able to tell the difference between the normal and more sustainable paper cups," the coffee chain said in a statement.
The new cup is lined with a biodegradable polyethylene alternative developed as part of a $10million investment challenge to find a sustainable coffee cup solution.
"This is an exciting next step as we continue to evaluate additional NextGen Consortium winning concepts and cup technologies, as well as test and learn from other recyclable innovations to help create a greener planet," Starbucks said in a statement.
Starbucks said the trial will last for four weeks as the chain looks into whether the new cups can be used more widely.
