Alaska Airlines becomes first U.S. airline to eliminate plastic cups on board

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Wednesday, January 25th, 2023 10:07am

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Photo by Ingrid Barrentine

Juneau, Alaska (KINY) - Alaska Airlines announced the completion of their transition to paper cups for inflight beverages, a move which eliminates more than 55 million plastic cups annually and replaces them with a more planet-friendly alternative.

Here are some of the ways Alaska Airlines is eliminating the top sources of plastic waste on board to reduce their impact on the environment:

• Eliminating plastic cups on board with responsibly-sourced paper cups
• Replacing plastic water bottles with Boxed Water™
• Encouraging guests to #FillBeforeYouFly to plant more trees (fill up your own water bottle before boarding the plane)
• Ditching plastic straws & stir sticks in 2018

All inflight beverages on Alaska flights are now served in Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certified paper cups or reusable glassware for most First-Class services.

Alaska Airlines began the process of eliminating their five largest sources of plastic waste in 2018 by removing plastic straws and stir sticks from inflight service – a first for any airline at the time.

As part of their broader sustainability efforts, Alaska Airlines continues to pursue product innovations and supply chain advancements to achieve their 2025 goal of replacing the top five waste-producing items from onboard service and continuing to recycle.

In 2021, Alaska Airlines established climate goals for its impacts in carbon, waste, and water while defining a five-part pathway to achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2040 to keep the places we live and fly beautiful and viable for generations to come.

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