The push to ban plastic straws is spreading to McDonald’s Corporation (NYSE:MCD) and New York City.
Investors in McDonald’s will be holding a vote today to determine the future of plastic straws at the company. MCD is urging shareholders to vote against banning plastic straws. It says the ban would hurt its other environmental efforts.
While it’s unknown how MCD stock holders will vote today, it doesn’t change the fact that the company has been facing pressure from environmental activists. This includes a petition with more than 500,000 signatures asking the company to ban plastic straws.
Those pushing for the ban of plastic straws argue that they are among the most common type of plastic waste. This shouldn’t come as too much of a surprise, considering Americans goes through 500 million of them a day. MCD’s is also the second-most common plastic straw waste found on beaches. Only coming in behind Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ:SBUX), reports Fortune.
McDonald’s may not be able to avoid a ban of plastic straws in NYC. A new bill has been put forth that seeks to ban the items from being distributed by restaurants in the city. The man behind this bill is Councilman Rafael Espinal.
Espinal says that he was inspired to create the bill after a whale washed up on the shore of Spain with over 60 pounds of trash in it. If the bill becomes law, it would force businesses to switch to biodegradable straws, or face fines, Eater notes.
As of this writing, William White did not hold a position in any of the aforementioned securities.
