Biodegradable straws at Animal Kingdom

[figgie]

Just a silly statement but I'm glad they now have biodegradable paper straws at AK. I've always liked drinking with a straw and though I don't want to harm the animals, I am enjoying my staws greatly!

[mcjaco]

I think all straws ****.

[jwildflower1981]

I'm a straw user too. I was glad to see AK to this also. I always ended up buying one of the plastic twirly straws from the gift shop so I would be without. It's a lot better to sip your frozen lemonaide through a straw. Straws rock:number1:

[DestinationWDW]

:thumbsup: I am happy too! It is hard without them when you have little ones over the sippy cup stage but not ready to do cups without lids/straws. Those swirly Mickey AK straws are cute and we still use but are mucho $$$$! :mickey:

[teambricker04]

:thumbsup: I am happy too! It is hard without them when you have little ones over the sippy cup stage but not ready to do cups without lids/straws. Those swirly Mickey AK straws are cute and we still use but are mucho $$$$! :mickey:

I am very happy about this as well! I agree... little people without straws are a MESS!

[CaptainJessicaSparrow]

I personally never understood everyone's complaints about not using a straw.

For little ones, bring your own sippy cup and transfer the drink into it. Simple.

For adults....do you use a straw at home? If you do, it's about as expensive to buy the plastic ones and throw them as buying a Mickey one...and washing it (not in a dishwasher, FYI, since the 180 degree rinse cycle tends to melt it).

And if you don't use one at home...then why is Disney different?

Also, do any of you folks drink any of the beers there? They are usually in a plastic cup...without a straw. So why is a soda any different?

Sorry, it's just always bothered me that people complained about something as stupid as a straw when most people don't even use them at home. But that's just my opinion.

[Piglet822]

I didn't know they had started offering straws. I'm glad to hear that as well.
I personally have no problem drinking out of cans or bottles but have trouble with a cup w/ ice in it. My teeth are too sensitive to the cold.

[#1donaldfan]

Man am I outta the loop......I never really thought about AK NOT having straws......I guess since I'm not a straw user, I just never really thought about it......with that, they did have straws with the frozen lemonaide at a stand just after getting off of KRR.....it was a keepsake straw spoon with a safari pluto on it. I wonder if they still have those.????????

[Davyjones]

I would prefer that they don't have straws or lids. It's so much safer for the animals that way. I understand why they have biodegradable ones, but most zoos don't have those available for the animals' safety, not for the environmental aspect of it. I'll just not use them when my wife and I go in May. :)

[ljv1975]

I didn't know they had started offering straws. I'm glad to hear that as well.
I personally have no problem drinking out of cans or bottles but have trouble with a cup w/ ice in it. My teeth are too sensitive to the cold.

Ditto to this. I only like to have a straw when ice is involved because it really does hurt my teeth. If it is a bottle of water or pop (soda?) I am fine without a straw.

Just a funny side note - I know a girl who drinks everything from a straw even COFFEE! She doesn't like the liquid to touch her teeth and stain them. For her I guess it's a vanity thing.

[MickeyChick]

The biodegradable straws at AK were great, but the lack of lid was tough with little ones. We left our sippy cups at the hotel because my littlest one likes to throw things and we were hauling enough stuff around with us.

I think we had our mugs with us, though empty that day... wonder why I didn't think of using them?

Now we know for next time!

But I wonder, with the conservation message of AK, why the lack of lids and paper straws and recycled napkins only in the one park? Wouldn't the message be more valid if that were the case at all 4 parks and the resorts? That would be a real commitment to going green from Disney .

[linedropper]

We were there in mid January and they only gave them to us with the milkshake, maybe we could have asked for them. But that was the only time they were handed to us! I think its marketing anyway! They keep those parks so clean a CM will have it picked up before I drop one!

Steve:mickey:

[Magic Smiles]

I just never really thought about it......with that, they did have straws with the frozen lemonaide at a stand just after getting off of KRR.....it was a keepsake straw spoon with a safari pluto on it. I wonder if they still have those.????????
No they no longer have the collectable safari pluto straw spoon. We ALWAYS got one each of those on our first day, but this past Dec, our frozen slushie lemonade came with a biodegradable yucky boring straw.:down:

[GrandFlo]

Just a funny side note - I know a girl who drinks everything from a straw even COFFEE! She doesn't like the liquid to touch her teeth and stain them. For her I guess it's a vanity thing.

My dentist recommended doing this. Not only does it help avoid staining your teeth, it's good for those with sensitive teeth like you mentioned and if you are drinking soda or juice it decreases the amount of sugar & acids from wearing away tooth enamel.

[Sean Riley Taylor's Mom]

My dentist recommended doing this. Not only does it help avoid staining your teeth, it's good for those with sensitive teeth like you mentioned and if you are drinking soda or juice it decreases the amount of sugar & acids from wearing away tooth enamel.


Which is exactly why I am thrilled that AK now has some sort of straw.

Even though I do drink water most of the time, the cold still kills my teeth.

I know how Powerade stains my kids lip area of they drink it without a straw...it used to make me cringe at what it was doing to their teeth!!

[#1donaldfan]

too bad they no longer have the collectable pluto straws....we've got a good supply of 'em anyway, it was just nice getting them....oh well, I don't think that alone will keep me from AK.......

[TheRustyScupper]

1) I am sooooooo confused.
2) The idea behind no-straws and no-lids was danger for animals.
3) It was never a case of conservation or biodegradable.
4) Now, all of a sudden, biodegradable is fine.
5) I think a biodegradable can lodge in a throat as easily as regular.

NOTE: In my personal opinion, this is a case of Disney getting caught. The idea things would hurt the animals gives way to preferences of guests who wanted straws. There is no basic problem here, but it does show that Disney gives up principles for bucks. SHAME, SHAME, SHAME

[baby minnie's mommy]

I assumed that when they said these straws were safer for animals, they meant if they were eaten these straws are safer for the digestion. Of course I wouldn't want to eat wax or paper, but wouldn't that be safer than plastic? I don't know the specific details, that was just what I thought when I read the article.

I was happy they made the paper/wax straws, as I don't like to fight the ice to get to the drink. (And soda isn't cold enough straight from the machine.) I like getting the bottled sodas out of the ice buckets at AK, but they don't have that everywhere.
But I understood why the straws and lids were not being used. I prefer a safe animal environment over my simple drink preference. :mickey:

Two thoughts:

Maybe there are a set of regulations that have to be followed in order to house certain animals, such as keeping their environment free of pollutants?

Aren't there a lot of imported plants/trees at AK? Would the plastic straws pose a hazard to more delicate species if they wound up in the soil? I have no idea if that's even possible - just a thought I was curious about. Maybe someone with a green thumb could let me know!

[MickeyChick]

1) I am sooooooo confused.
2) The idea behind no-straws and no-lids was danger for animals.
3) It was never a case of conservation or biodegradable.
4) Now, all of a sudden, biodegradable is fine.
5) I think a biodegradable can lodge in a throat as easily as regular.


My one-year-old chewed on and ate the paper straw in AK. It was sturdy enough to start with but started getting soggy toward the end of the soda. If my toddler can eat it, I'm pretty sure it's not harmful to the animals.

The whole park is about conservation-- they shove that message down your throat at every turn, so again, I have to ask, why only AK and not all 4 parks?

[CaptainJessicaSparrow]

Because the straws aren't about conversation.

They didn't offer them because of the animals. Animals (and most humans) do not have digestive abilities to magically dissolve plastic. If they had eaten or swallowed the straw, they could have gotten seriously sick or died.

The lack of straws was for their healthy and safety, not the environment. Most people don't realize this.

As for the napkins - all of WDW used napkins made from recycled paper.

[Disneyatic]

I can totally understand not offering straws because of the animals and now that there is a biodegradable version I think it's a great idea for them to introduce them in.
I haven't seen these new straws, but they obviously breakdown much easier and wouldn't be harmful to the animals if one gets thrown in their habitat and they eat it.

We have an awesome zoo in our city and I hope that they start offering these soon. We always bring our own straws with us when we go.
I can't stand drinking anything but water straight from a cup, I hate the liquid touching my top lip:blush:

[Buttercup]

I personally never understood everyone's complaints about not using a straw.


I have to have a straw if I'm drinking a cup chock-full of ice cubes. I hate having the ice clink against my teeth -- too cold!
I don't fill my cups with ice at home, that's why I don't usually use a straw at home. And they don't put ice cubes in beer, so that's why it's okay not to have a straw there.

But when you're getting a fountain drink that is half-full of ice, you gotta have a straw!:thumbsup:

[mickey&missy]

I'm assuming that the new paper straws are easier on the animals if they eat them.

Our 05 trip we stayed at AKL, we didn't know that AKL or AK didn't allow straws or lids, or balloons for that matter. DS was 2 and DD was 4. Both perfectly able to drink from a cup with a straw so we didn't really think about taking a sippy cup to the parks. We had 2 with us for the trip down to FL, luckily. Our first morning we wandered around the Mara looking for straws for the kids milk. A CM explained the no straws and lids rule and also told me no balloons. So I went and got the sippy cups from the room. No biggy! I'm glad she told us no balloons. I would have been a little angry if I had bought the giant princess balloon DD wanted and was told I couldn't take it back to the resort by the bus driver! Again, no biggy! We bought it our last day and took it home.

[CaptainJessicaSparrow]

But when you're getting a fountain drink that is half-full of ice, you gotta have a straw!:thumbsup:


You can ask for no ice. The fountains are pretty cold so the soda won't taste much different (plus you'll get more soda since the ice won't be there to make it fill quicker). My friend hates ice and just requests no ice on her drinks. Solves the problem.

[Sean Riley Taylor's Mom]

You can ask for no ice. The fountains are pretty cold so the soda won't taste much different (plus you'll get more soda since the ice won't be there to make it fill quicker). My friend hates ice and just requests no ice on her drinks. Solves the problem.

It doesn't for people that have really sensitive teeth.;)

Not trying to be argumentative just saying that there are people, like me, that have a problem with any kind of cold on their teeth. Ice is not the only issue for some, it is the cold, period.

I am used to the no straw deal. We go to the Bronx Zoo quite often and they have the same rule.

It is just a plus if AK has come up with a way to have them and also have them be safe for the animals.