It’s the Great Straw-off of 2019! Which eco-friendly straw shall rule them all?!
Straws feel like much more of a summer sipping tool for smoothies, lemonade, milkshakes, iced coffee, and tall refreshing cocktails. Winter pairs better with small sips from the rim of a tightly clutched mug filled with hot chocolate, tea, and warm coffee. So, why am I writing a post about eco-friendly straws? Because they are long and skinny… and so are stockings! And, because our family had a lot of fun testing four contenders and we wanted to share our results.
We’ve been trying a few different eco-friendly straws as part of a bigger effort to be more responsible about plastic waste. The task of “greening” your life and altering habits can be overwhelming, not knowing where to start. One by one, we are working to change habits.
All four of us love drinking out of straws. And, we all admitted to liking traditional plastic straws. We like their feel in the mouth, their pliable nature, and chewing on them as we work our way through a beverage.
In an effort to decide which eco-friendly straw was the best of all, we created worksheets and rated four different types of straws on appearance (look, color, and shape), mouthfeel (texture, pliability, size), and use (suction, delivery, bend, width.) We tested paper, hard plastic, metal, and bent silicone straws. Each straw could earn a total of 15 points, up to 5 points in each of the three categories.
Below are our results and notes as well as where we bought each of them. I’m sure there are dozens more options, please leave a comment and let us know if you have a favorite eco-friendly straw.
PAPER STRAWS, Average score 8/15
Overall, we thought that paper straws were pretty and scored high marks for how they look since they come in hundreds of designs and colors. However, we were very unhappy with how soggy they get. One of the girls wrote, “It just gets all gooey.” Finally, they still create waste as they aren’t reusable.
Where to buy paper straws:
You can buy these in most big box stores and party stores. This E
HARD PLASTIC STRAWS, Average score 9/15
Our family was pretty divided on these. Some liked them best and others were very displeased. Our plastic straws have a small rim around them that was quite controversial! One critic didn’t like their straight rigid shape and preferred bent straws. Two of us were pleased with the transparent nature of our aqua straws since it allows you to see the liquid moving up towards your mouth. They are easy to clean with the brush that comes with them. One final negative – they are still plastic, though very hearty and reusable.
Where to buy reusable plastic straws:
We bought ours at Big Lots on a whim, which is actually what started our adventure in eco-friendly straws. A variety of colors of reusable plastic straws are widely available on amazon.
METAL STRAWS, Average score 10/15
We loved the look of these straws and decided they would be awesome for parties. They are very pretty and the extra cold stainless steel would be especially nice in
Where to buy reusable stainless steel straws:
We received these stainless steel reusable straws from Unwrapped Life. It’s a thoughtful company and nice site that has other plastic-free products.
BENT SILICONE STRAWS, Average score 13/15
This was the clear winner. Three of us ranked this straw highest, our littlest even ranking it 15.5/15 points. We liked the bent shape and most of us enjoyed the squishy-ness of the silicone. They also come with small carrying cases if you want to bring them in your purse and bag. You can choose a ton of colors and traditional or extra wide width.
Where to buy silicone straws:
We chose this set of bendable silicone straws from Amazon because we loved the colors. You can find other varieties and sizes.
In conclusion, we liked silicone straws best, followed by metal, hard plastic, and finally paper. We’d love to hear which eco-friendly straws you like. And if you have
A note on cleaning: All reusable straws come with a long skinny brush. Yes, it takes a bit longer to clean a reusable straw than it does to throw out a disposable straw. But it takes just SECONDS. I keep our brush in the dish drainer near my sink and do a quick soapy swish in and out. Voila. We think it’s worth it.