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This scientific study might be the last straw.
A damning study out of South Korea has revealed that paper straws might actually be worse for the planet than plastic ones, especially when their life cycle is traced from the factory floor to the landfill.
The findings suck the air out of some long-winded environmental protests, which claimed for a decade that plastic straws were on par with toxic fumes or forest fires — and fought to make iced lattes nearly impossible to drink through a soggy, wilted tube of cardboard.
The research comes from South Korea’s Ministry of Climate, Energy and Environment, which analyzed four types of straws — paper, plastic, biodegradable plastic, and sugarcane-based — across 16 environmental categories.
Traditional plastic straws showed the lowest environmental footprint in 10 of the 16 categories, including human toxicity, particulate matter, and overall climate change impact.
Meanwhile, paper straws were found to generate over six times more carcinogens than standard plastic, along with double the impact on environmental acidification.
As for “Bio-PE” straws — the kind made from renewable sources like sugarcane — they produced 16 times the carcinogenic impact of standard plastic straws, along with six times the acidification damage (the metric scientists use to measure changes in ocean and soil pH levels).
But aren’t paper straws better anyway because they can be recycled?
Not exactly. The study found that because paper straws are so small, they routinely slip through sorting equipment at recycling facilities, meaning almost none actually get recycled.
Furthermore, their water-resistant coatings and industrial glues prevent them from breaking down easily, demanding more energy during processing and leaving open the possibility that microplastics could end up in the recycled pulp anyway.
Confronted with the findings, South Korean lawmaker Kim Wi-sang criticized domestic environmental groups and his own government for prioritizing feel-good narratives over hard science.
“The government must acknowledge the failure of its greenwashing policy, which fixated on ineffective substitute materials,” he said.
The public seems to agree. According to a government survey of 1,001 South Korean citizens, 87.5% dislike paper straws.
So what’s the solution? If possible, invest in a set of reusable straws made from durable materials like stainless steel or silicone, which are dishwasher-safe and easy to rinse out in the sink.
Or you could simply sip your drink using nature’s original straw: your mouth.
