It has been confirmed that more plastic is used in "drinking leads" introduced by many franchise companies to reduce the use of disposable straws. In other words, a "balloon effect" appeared when the government only regulated plastic straws and did not regulate lids. Analysts say that the government's poor policy management has overshadowed the purpose of the disposable product regulation policy.
According to Money Today's report, McDonald's, Lotteria, and Burger King, large franchisees, were providing drinking leads to customers in stores. McDonald's has introduced Drinking Reed to stores nationwide since October 2020. Starting with 100 direct stores in May last year, Lotteria distributed drinking leads to stores nationwide sequentially, and except for some franchises, it does not use existing plastic lids and straws. Burger King has introduced Drinking Reed sequentially since September and will be used in stores nationwide in October.
This is the result of the enforcement regulations of the Resource Recycling Act, which restrict the use of plastic straws in restaurants, since the 24th of last month. The government had a one-year guidance period to not impose fines in consideration of confusion at the site, but large franchises introduced "Drinking Reed" to replace straws early on.
The problem is that more plastic is used to make drinking leads. McDonald's drinking lead weighs 3.78 grams. It is 54 percent heavier than the combined weight of the existing plastic lid and straw. This means that more plastic has been used. Burger King's drinking lid weighs 3.33 grams and the total weight of its existing products is 2.4 grams. If 10,000 drinks are sold based on McDonald's, up to 13.3kg more plastic will be used.
Experts analyze that due to the nature of plastic that is difficult to recycle, if it increases in weight, it can adversely affect environmental pollution. Lee Deok-hwan, a professor of chemistry at Sogang University, said, "The material of drinking leads is different from existing products, so the impact on environmental pollution may be different. Plastic is difficult to recycle, so the material is not meaningful and production is the biggest problem."
When this paper raised the issue during the coverage process, some companies said they would not use drinking leads after using existing inventory. An official from Lotteria said, "The drinking lid we are currently using is already in production, and we have set internally guidelines to provide only multi-use cups and paper straws to customers who drink indoors in the future."
The government is working with large franchises to reduce the use of disposable products. An official from the Ministry of Environment said, "We are adding more urgent items one by one rather than dropping the lid on disposable items," adding, "We are trying to reduce plastic use by signing voluntary agreements with franchisees even if they are not regulated by law."
Writer: Grace Jun
(Picture from Unsplash)
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