Starbucks not always environmentally sound

The Starbucks outlet in Anguk-dong, which is popular with tourists, shows the company's name written in Hangeul.

It appears difficult to find nutritional information in branches

By Cathy Rose A. Garcia

For many people, a day would not be complete without at least one cup of coffee from the ubiquitous American coffee chain Starbucks.

It’s hard to avoid Starbucks with 323 outlets around the country. Even walking around the streets of Seoul, it seems you’ll find the familiar green and white Starbucks logo everywhere you turn.

Green is not just the signature color of Starbucks, but also a silent symbol that sends out the message that the American coffee chain is committed to being ``green’’ or environmentally conscious, as well.

Inside any Starbucks, one will find posters highlighting the company’s ``green’’ efforts in ethical sourcing, community involvement and environmental stewardship.

Starbucks cups

But many question just how ``green’’ Starbucks can be when thousands of paper and plastic cups, straws and stirrers are used and disposed of every day all over the world?

Starbucks produces four billion of the 500 billion paper and plastic cups used every year. In Korea alone, Starbucks has 120,000 customers every day, which would amount to 43.8 million cups used every year.

When you order a cup of coffee at any Starbucks, it is rare for the barista to ask you if you would rather have it in a mug, instead of a disposable plastic or paper cup. The server almost always assumes the customer wants the coffee to go.

The disposable cups are printed with a message from the corporate social responsibility program, Starbucks Shared Planet: ``It is our commitment to doing business in ways that are good to each other and the planet. It’s using our size for good. And because you support us, Starbucks Shared Planet is what you are a part of too.”

The Shared Planet message on the disposable cup is quite vague. What is the consumer a part of? Does the company want to continue making consumers think it’s okay to use disposable cups that contributes to more waste?

Starbucks sells plastic tumblers and ceramic mugs in its outlets, but rarely does one see anyone actually go inside the store and ask for a beverage to be served in a tumbler, instead of the plastic cup.

Perhaps no one does it because it is somewhat inconvenient to carry a tumbler in your purse all day. More importantly, there is no real incentive to bring one’s own tumbler or mug at Starbucks, since one pays the same amount whether you use a paper cup, Starbucks’ in-house ceramic mug or your own mug.

This is unlike in the U.S. and Canada, where Starbucks offers a 10 cent discount to encourage customers to use their own reusable mugs or tumblers.

The issue of disposable cups and packaging is so important for Starbucks that it even hosted a ``Cup Summit’’ in Seattle in 2009 to try to find a comprehensive recyclable cup solution. But even the company admits that its efforts need improvement.

As of 2009, only 1.5 percent of beverages made in its stores are served in reusable cups. Yet the company is aiming to serve 25 percent of beverages in reusable receptacles by 2015. The website only shows results for the U.S. and Canadian owned stores, and none for the overseas stores.

``We are committed to doing more and continue to search for new ways to reduce the environmental footprint of our disposable cups and other packaging,’’ Starbucks said.

Like most companies, Starbucks likes to tout its green efforts, especially since surveys have shown consumers are likely to patronize green companies.

There are stacks of pamphlets introducing Starbucks’ whole bean coffee or Starbucks’ ``coffee corporate social responsibility’’ and its efforts to support conservation and coffee farmers. But who actually reads these pamphlets? Starbucks patrons already know what kind of coffee they want, and any information on the company’s CSR efforts is already available on the website.

But Starbucks continues to print stacks of paper pamphlets and distributes it in its outlets, leading to more paper waste.

Nutritional content

Starbucks, which is widely credited with introducing the coffee culture in Korea, recently celebrated its 11th anniversary in the nation. The chain has expanded its offerings to include not just coffee and snacks, but also sandwiches, pastries, doughnuts, macaroons and yogurt.

For the health-conscious, Starbucks does not provide any nutritional information on its store menu. It would have been helpful if the menus provided information on the amount of calories each beverage or food item contains, to allow consumers to make an informed choice at the point of purchase.

Instead, customers would have to go on the Starbucks Korea website (www.istarbucks.co.kr) to find out the calorie content for the beverages and food served here.

Brewed coffee is only five calories regardless of size, but a hot white chocolate mocha grande contains 500 calories.

Not surprisingly, the drink with the most calories is the decadent chocolate cream chip Frappuccino grande with 505 calories. With whipped cream, it adds another 80 to 110 calories. At around 585 calories, this Frappuccino contains even more calories than a Big Mac which has 525.

Starbucks serves brunch sets until 3 p.m., pairing hot sandwiches with an Americano or Latte at discounted prices. For example, a ham, egg and cheese ciabatta has 405 calories, plus a latte with 180 calories comes to 585 calories, and for only 8,100 won. A plain bagel with butter and jam, plus black coffee is only 4,800, but the total calorie content would be 365 calories (360 calories for the bagel and 5 calories for the coffee).

The cakes and pastries are tempting, but also filled with calories. A slice of sweet potato cake has 402 calories, a cheese scone 473 and a walnut brownie has 490 calories.

Starbucks has made attempts to include ``healthier’’ options such as soy banana muffins, rice kiwis, organic juices and yogurt. A rice kiwi has 90 calories while a small cup of berry yogurt contains 117.

If Starbucks is really serious about ``being responsible and doing things that are good for the planet and each other’’ as it says on its website, then it should make stronger efforts to improve its menu and service for its loyal customers.

스타벅스 1회용 종이컵 환경친화에 역행

이미 많은 사람들에게 미국 커피 체인점 스타벅스에서 구입하는 커피 한잔은 빼놓을 수 없는 하루의 일과이다.
전세계 323개의 매장을 가지고 있는 스타벅스 답게 서울 거리 어디에서나 스타벅스의 초록색 로고를 심심치
않게 발견 할 수 있는데, 과연 환경친화적 기업임을 강조하는 로고처럼 스타벅스는 환경보호를 위해 정말 노력하고 있을까?

소비자들은 대개 1회용 종이컵에 마시는 테이크-아웃 형태의 커피를 주문한다. 매장에 앉아 커피를 마시고 가더라도 종이컵에 담아서 마시는 경우를 종종 보는데, 종업원들도 굳이 머그컵이나 재활용 할 수 있는 잔을 권하지 않고 있다.

스타벅스는 1년에 40억 개의 종이/플라스틱 컵을 생산하는데, 한국에서만 하루에 12만명이 찾기 때문에 1년에 한국에서 소비되는 종이컵은 4,380만개에 달한다.

종이컵에는 "스타벅스를 사랑해주시는 고객께서는, 스타벅스의 지구사랑 켐페인 SHARED PLANET에 참여하고 계십니다" 라는 문구가 담겨 있는데, 도대체 어떤 식으로 종이컵에 담긴 커피를 사는 것이 환경보호에 도움이 되는지는 아무 언급도 되어 있지 않다.

환경보호의 목적을 위해서라면 머그 컵, 또는 텀블러를 이용하는 추세가 늘어나야 하는데, 한국에서 이같은 현상은
거의 찾아보기 힘들다. 미국과 캐나다에서는 개인의 텀블러에 커피를 주문할 시 10센트 가량을 할인해 주는데 비해
우리나라는 불편하게 텀블러를 들고 와도 같은 가격에 커피를 마셔야 하기 때문이다.

이같은 문제를 해결하기 위해 2009년에 스타벅스는 아이디어 공모전을 했었는데 이렇다 할 해결책을 찾지 못하고 있다. 2009년에는 고작 1.5%의 음료만이 재활용 할수 있는 컵에 판매되었지만, 스타벅스 측은 2015년까지 이 같은 판매량을 전체의 25%로 늘리는 것을 목표로 하고 있다.
이 같은 목표가 실현될지는 아직 미지수이다. 효과적인 해결책을 제시하는 대신, 자연친화적인 캠페인을 알리는 광고를
찍어내는데 더 많은 종이를 낭비하고 있다.

전세계적으로 웰빙 열풍이 아직 사그러 들지 않은 요즘, 11주년을 맞이하는 스타벅스의 상황은 어떨까?
건강을 챙기고자 하는 사람이라면, 스타벅스의 메뉴판에 칼로리에 대한 정보나, 영양 정보가 전혀 없다는 사실을 쉽게 발견 할 수 있다. 이같은 정보를 확인하려면, 스타벅스 한국 홈페이지에 접속하여 찾아봐야 한다.

칼로리가 명시되어 있지 않은 음료중 휘핑크림을 넣은 쵸콜렛 크림 프라프치노 그란데 사이즈의 칼로리는 약 585에 육박한다. 이는 맥도날드의 빅맥 (525 칼로리) 보다 높은 수치이다. 요즘은 이같은 추세에 맞추기 위해 바나나 머핀, 천연과일쥬스, 요구르트 같은 제품들로 변화를 시도하고 있다.

스타벅스가 정말 환경을 생각하는 브랜드 이미지를 만들고자 한다면, 더 많은 노력을 기울여야 할 것 같다.