3 eco-friendly alternatives to plastic straws
Whichever you choose, Pink Do of Hang Xanh believes it'll work for you
If you want to reduce your plastic waste and consumption, here’s an easy first step: Use metal straws instead of plastic ones. (Want to try one? Check out Seastainable Co and UnPackt.)
Or better yet, drink straight from the bottle or glass. (Of course, this won’t work if you’re having bubble tea, or any other beverage with pudding, sweets and toppings. Thankfully, there are now metal straws that have been specially made and sized just right for those.)
But there are still other, eco-friendly options to plastic and metal straws – two, in fact. I recently discovered dried grass and rice powder straws. (Actually, there's three, if you count bamboo. But I already know a little bit about that one.)
Hang Xanh Co, Ltd – a 20-year-old company in Vietnam that specialises in agricultural, seafood, and eco-friendly products for restaurants, coffee shops and hotels, with customers from the US, Korea and Japan – has both kinds of straws, as well as bamboo.
Are you as curious about them as I am? Pink Do, Hang Xanh’s sales executive, gives us an introduction, as well as her personal favourite things about each. (Note: This isn't sponsored.)
#1 Dried grass straws
Naturally green and yellow, these are said to keep for as long as six months under room-temperature conditions.
“It is the cheapest, and is suitable for liquids and water without jelly or toppings,” Pink says.
“When you drink coffee, it makes the coffee bolder and more delicious.”
#2 Rice powder straws
In black, purple and green, these are made of rice flour and tapioca starch.
“We can eat these after using. If you don’t want to, they’ll decompose within three months – you don’t have to wait 500 years, like with a plastic straw,” she explains.
“It’s also suitable for water and liquids without jelly or toppings.”
#3 Bamboo straws
These are biodegradable, organic, and produced and crafted in Vietnam.
“Ours come in a big size, 8mm to 15mm, and a smaller size, 5mm to 7mm,” Pink describes.
“Bamboo straws are suitable for all types of liquids. You can reuse them for as long as you want. You can also engrave a name on the straw and use it as a meaningful gift.”
I say the more eco-friendly choices, the better.
Are these straws readily available in your area? Let me know if you’ve already tried and tested them. What do you think?
Hang Xanh Co, Ltd is at 173 Dien Bien Phu Street, Ward 15, Binh Thanh District, Ho Chi Minh City, 700000, Vietnam. Visit their website or get in touch with them via sales10@hxcorp.com.vn and +84 969 482 585 (WhatsApp).