McDonald's Is Launching First Ever "Green Concept" Restaurants In Canada

Recently, multiple restaurants across Canada have been doing their part to limit the amount of plastic that is used throughout their stores. A&W was one of the first brands to stop the use of plastic straws throughout their chain, and multiple restaurants have been following suit. Now, McDonald's has announced that it will be launching two 'Green Concept Restaurants' that will be the first in the country to be using 100% recyclable materials. 

In a press release, McDonald's states that these two 'Green Concept Restaurants' will be located in London, Ontario at the 1033 Wonderland Rd South location and Vancouver, B.C at the 3444 E Hastings St location. These will be 'incubator' locations for the new green concept restaurants. 

McDonald's Canada announced that in an attempt to reduce the company's environmental footprint, these two McDonald's locations will only be using food packaging that is made from only renewable and recycled materials. 

While a lot of packaging that is already environmentally friendly will be kept the same, McDonald's will also be introducing a variety of new products into these two locations. 

In the next coming months, guests at these two locations can expect to see the switchover from plastic to paper straws as well as new fibre lids for drinks that are not only recyclable but will also reduce the use of straws as a guest can sip from the lid directly. 

On top of this, customers can also expect to see the introduction of wooden cutlery and wooden stir sticks to replace the original single-use plastic options. 

McDonald's will also be introducing napkins that are 20% smaller and eliminating all foam packaging options that were originally used for their gravy bowls and some breakfast items. 

The company will also be adding a "How 2 Recycle" label to all Happy Meal boxes, cups and carryout bags that will inform guests how to properly recycle their packaging. 

McDonald's states that these changes will help to remove more than 1,500 tons of packaging material from the McDonald's Canada system. 

McDonald's Canada has set a goal that by 2025 all McDonald's restaurants will contain 100% recyclable materials. 

Disclaimer: Cover photo used for illustrative purposes only.