7A- Testing the Hypothesis Part 1

Opportunity: Plastic straws can’t be recycled like a lot of other plastics and millions of them are thrown away daily which negatively effects our environment—especially our oceans and coasts.

The who: Plastic straw users, and restaurants/bars.

The what: There needs to be another type of straw to cut back on plastic straw usage.

The why: Plastic straws have been the regular choice in many restaurants and bars, so it is hard to make this change to a more environmentally-friendly straw.

Testing the who: Others who may be affected by this problem are hospitals, food trucks, food courts, and anywhere else that serves drinks with straws.

Testing the what: Other straw options, such as paper, may not hold up as well for an alternative. Other plastic items used in these places are bad for our environment too and other options for them may also need to be considered.

Testing the why: Many restaurants/bars and straw users may not want to give up their use of plastic straws. Many people may not look at this problem as that big of a negative effect on our environment.

Interview #1: 22-year-old male

He believes plastic straws are bad for our environment and is open to just stop using them altogether. He wouldn’t look for an alternative to plastic straws, rather he would just not use straws at all. He thinks companies that use straws a lot like fast food and coffee shops are most affected by the need for an alternative to plastic straws. He thinks people should just stop asking for straws at restaurants and that coffee shops and fast food places should start using those recyclable sippy-cup lids instead. He also thinks that plastic cups are just as bad for the environment when not recycled.

Interview #2: Male in his 50s
He thinks that they are bad for our oceans and he doesn’t really use straws often, so he’ll just stop using plastic straws. Other people/companies effected by the need for an alternative is children’s juice boxes/pouches that come with straws and fast food companies as well. He thinks an alternative should be made of hemp. He’s heard of places making alternatives to plastic bags out of hemp, which is biodegradable, and thinks this could work for straws too. Other products that have the same negative effect to our oceans are any other small plastic items people don’t think to/can’t recycle.

Interview #3: 21-year-old female
She also thinks straws have a negative affect and wants to buy one of the reusable, collapsible straws that have been invented. She thinks all restaurants and bars, and fast food places that automatically give out plastic straws are most affected by the need for an alternative. Alternatives she has considered as a solution are the reusable, collapsible straws, to just stop using plastic straws, to use paper straws, or use the recyclable sippy-cup lids. Also, she thinks people should be charged extra if they want to use a plastic straw like some places do for plastic bags. Another relatable product that has a similar negative affect that should be considered too is the plastic six-pack things that hold cans together, and plastic grocery bags.

Interview #4: 21-year-old female
She does think that there is a negative effect on the environment from plastic straws, but thinks people are over-reacting on how big of an affect it has on our oceans. She thinks efforts need to be focused on bigger problems, such as overfishing, etc. She would be open to an alternative method but only if the place of business provides it. She simply just won’t use plastic straws often otherwise. She thinks people who are affected by this problem is those with physical disabilities who need straws to drink from. That’s why she doesn’t want places of business to ban plastic straws altogether unless they have an alternative. Some alternatives she considers suitable are reusable straws and for places of business—paper straws. Other problems related to this one to be considered are plastic bags at grocery stores. She likes how some places charge for them and thinks that’s a good idea for plastic straws too.

Interview #5: 21-year old male
He thinks they have a negative affect on the environment and coming from a coastal hometown, the problem hits home. He says he never uses plastic straws at restaurants and hopes other businesses come up with an alternative to plastic straws. Some alternatives he’s thought of are paper straws, or people not asking for plastic straws and instead using a reusable straw they bring with them instead, or no straw at all. He thinks fast food places, restaurants, and people who enjoy drinking from straws are affected by the need for an alternative. Other problems he thinks are related to the issue plastic straws bring up are the use of Styrofoam in cups/plates, which is also very bad for the environment.

Summary: After all my interviews I see that there are a lot more people/companies that are affected by the problem I found a potential opportunity from. I did not consider coffee shops, fast food places, or people who need straws to drink because of physical disabilities. I heard a lot of great alternatives to plastic straws that I may not have considered either.