McDonald's divides fans after introducing new strawless lid

The past few years have seen a move away from plastic straws to paper alternatives which are more environmentally friendly.

Now, McDonald's - which introduced paper straws - has unveiled a new cup that does away with the need for a straw entirely.

The strawless lid is currently being tested in select US branches and is very much reminiscent of the kind of lid you'd expect to find on a coffee.

As reported by Fox 9, the strawless lids, like the paper straws, are part of the company's bid to become more environmentally friendly.

The fast food company told the news outlet: "These lids help optimise our packaging and eliminate the use of small plastics, just one example of the many solutions we're reviewing as part of our ongoing global commitment to reduce waste across restaurants and advance recycling."

McDonald's

However, McDonald's isn't just looking to cut back on its use of plastic when it comes to its packaging, but its famous Happy Meal toys too.

McDonald's said: "Our ambition is to drastically reduce plastics in Happy Meal toys and transition to more sustainable materials by the end of 2025.

"Since 2018, we have reduced virgin fossil fuel-based plastic in Happy Meal toys by 24.4 percent globally, and we continue to work on sourcing materials used in Happy Meal toys from renewable, recycled or certified sources."

However, while McDonald's might have good intentions with its new, strawless cup, it's received a mix reaction from fast food fans on social media.

Alamy / Alex Segre

Reacting to the strawless cup, one McDonald's customer wrote: "If @McDonalds remove straws, then I won't go anymore for sure! Soda goes with straws! Wrong idea!"

A second slammed: "Oh boy, back to kindergarten when adults didn't trust kids with drinks."

"I hate the strawless lids," wrote a third, while a fourth joked: "Old white women are going to go ballistic when they order their first 96oz diet coke of the day."

Meanwhile, a fifth questioned how the strawless lid could be a more environmentally friendly option when it contains more plastic.

They wrote: "So they added more plastic to the plastic lid??"

On that note, perhaps the best solution to the issue was suggested by a sixth fast food fan who wrote: "'Bring your own cup.' Would be much better for the environment."

However, not everyone was against the new lid and it did have some fans.

One praised: "Strawless lids are coming to @McDonalds and I can't applaud this move loud enough."

UNILAD has reached out to McDonald's for further comment.