Southwest switching to bamboo drink cups in effort to reduce single-use plastics

You may notice something's a little different next time you order a cold drink on a Southwest Airlines flight.

Instead of plastic, your beverage will arrive in a cup made primarily of bamboo and will be served with a birchwood stir stick sporting the carrier's iconic "Heart" branding.

Here's what it looks like:

The new stir stick is made entirely of birchwood that is certified by the Forest Stewardship Council, a nonprofit organization that uses independent parties to verify that forests are managed responsibly. The new cup is made from 93% non-plastic materials, with a pulp blend comprised of 75% bamboo and 25% paper, and also has a polyethylene lining. Bamboo is considered a "rapidly renewable material" by the U.S. Green Building Council (an organization dedicated to minimizing climate impacts) because it reaches maturation in three to five years.

Southwest said it conducted "robust testing" on the items with both customers and employees — switching from plastic to bamboo cups and birchwood stir sticks won't make your water, soda or other cold beverages taste different.

The Dallas-based airline also says that swapping to bamboo and birchwood cups will help it reduce its use of inflight single-use plastics by more than 1.5 million pounds per year. This will help the company make progress towards its larger sustainability goals.

"We're excited to continue collaborating with our suppliers to work toward our goal of fully eliminating, where feasible, single-use plastics from inflight service by 2030," said Helen Giles, Southwest's managing director of environmental sustainability, in a statement.

Southwest's Nonstop to Net Zero strategy, which was announced in 2023, established the airline's goal of joining the larger aviation community in reaching net zero carbon emissions by 2050. The company's 2025 goals are to reduce single-use plastics generated by inflight service by 50% (by weight) and to save 50 million incremental gallons of jet fuel.

Additionally, in July 2024, Southwest previously reduced its use of light plastic by switching the wrapping for its napkin bundles from plastic to a paper sheath made of 100% post-consumer recycled materials, fully eliminating the use of plastic in this specific item.

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In the coming months, Southwest plans to introduce a new select-a-snack offering on flights to and from Hawaii to decrease food waste and reduce single-use plastic packaging by at least 18,000 pounds annually.

Southwest is looking at other places to further reduce the use of single-use plastics inflight.

According to the carrier's 2023 Southwest One Report, while 75% of the onboard single-use plastics were generated from cups and stir sticks (now gone), as well as straws and plastic snack packaging, about 25% of the plastic the airline is trying to eliminate comes from single-use wine and liquor bottles. The airline has also made a commitment to improve its recycling program by (among other actions) "practicing consistency" regarding onboard recycling, improving its uniform recycling program and supporting a variety of programs and organizations that upcycle the airline's leather seat covers.

Southwest, of course, isn't the only airline working on ways to reach its sustainability goals. On National Reuse Day (Oct. 20), Alaska Airlines tested a reusable cup program on a round-trip flight between Seattle and Minneapolis. The airline eliminated plastic cups on flights as of January 2023.