{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,30]],"date-time":"2026-07-30T02:22:55Z","timestamp":1785378175919,"version":"3.55.0"},"reference-count":19,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"9","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2025,4,30]],"date-time":"2025-04-30T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1745971200000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Polymers"],"abstract":"<jats:p>The usage of more than 30 billion straws a year has been reported in the European Union (EU), in 2020, one year before the official ban of single-use plastics in Europe. The impacts of this plastic waste on the environment and on our health are global and can be drastic. Since then, various alternative straws have emerged. This study assesses their effectiveness, primarily from an environmental perspective, to determine the best option among those available. Life-cycle assessment (LCA) was conducted using ReCiPe 2016 methodology and ISO 14040\/44 standards, alongside a preliminary cost analysis and a consumer preference survey. The findings reveal that wheat straws demonstrated the lowest overall environmental impact, with a climate change contribution of only 0.0568 kg CO2 eq. per year, while plastic straws showed the lowest cost at EUR 0.30 per year but contributed 0.084 kg CO2 eq. Metallic straws, despite being reusable, had the highest washing-related emissions, with 85% of their annual impact (~0.169 kg CO2 eq.) attributed to dishwashing. Paper and bioplastic alternatives showed up to 2.5 times higher climate impacts than plastic. Cost-wise, bamboo straws reached EUR 7.97\/year, while silicone and metal straws were more economically favorable at EUR 1.17 and EUR 2.81, respectively. The consumer survey highlighted that 85% of users preferred traditional plastic straws, but 76% were open to reusable alternatives. From a socio-economic point of view, cost seems to play a minor role. However, consumers\u2019 preferences towards the new products and their awareness of health and environmental risks are very significant factors affecting their approval of new alternatives and their displeasure towards traditional straw elimination.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/polym17091235","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2025,5,1]],"date-time":"2025-05-01T05:10:32Z","timestamp":1746076232000},"page":"1235","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":6,"title":["Environmental and Economic Impacts of Substituting Single-Use Plastic Straws: A Life-Cycle Assessment for Greece"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"17","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-0553-0145","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Panagiota","family":"Eleni","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Exelisis IKE, Consulting Company, Leof. Dekelias 215 & Skra 2, 14342 Athens, Greece"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-0639-5774","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Christos","family":"Boukouvalas","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"School of Chemical Engineering, National Technical University of Athens, Iroon Polytechneiou 9, Zografou Campus, 15780 Athens, Greece"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2025,4,30]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","unstructured":"European Commission (2024, March 15). Single-Use Plastics: New EU Rules to Reduce Marine Litter, Available online: https:\/\/ec.europa.eu\/commission\/presscorner\/detail\/en\/ip_18_3927."},{"key":"ref_2","unstructured":"UNEP\u2014United Nations Environment Programme (2018). Single-Use Plastics: A Roadmap for Sustainability, UNEP. 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The World\u2019s Plastic Pollution Crisis, Explained. Available online: https:\/\/www.nationalgeographic.com\/environment\/article\/plastic-pollution."},{"key":"ref_7","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"105451","DOI":"10.1016\/j.resconrec.2021.105451","article-title":"Environmental performance comparison of bioplastics and petrochemical plastics: A review of life cycle assessment (LCA) methodological decisions","volume":"168","year":"2021","journal-title":"Resour. Conserv. Recycl."},{"key":"ref_8","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Adele Folino, A.K. (2020). Biodegradation of Wasted Bioplastics in Natural and Industrial Environments: A Review. Sustainability, 12.","DOI":"10.3390\/su12156030"},{"key":"ref_9","unstructured":"European Environment Agency (2024, March 15). Biodegradable and Compostable Plastics\u2014Challenges and Opportunities. 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A sustainable Bioeconomy for Europe: Strengthening the Connection Between Economy, Society and the Environment, Available online: https:\/\/op.europa.eu\/en\/publication-detail\/-\/publication\/edace3e3-e189-11e8-b690-01aa75ed71a1\/language-en."},{"key":"ref_18","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"012029","DOI":"10.1088\/1755-1315\/1011\/1\/012029","article-title":"Evaluation and future development direction of paper straw and plastic straw","volume":"1011","author":"Qiu","year":"2022","journal-title":"IOP Conf. Ser. Earth Environ. Sci."},{"key":"ref_19","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"012005","DOI":"10.1088\/1755-1315\/1368\/1\/012005","article-title":"Biodegradation of bioplastic straws compared to conventional plastic straws","volume":"1368","author":"Limpiteeprakan","year":"2024","journal-title":"IOP Conf. Ser. Earth Environ. Sci."}],"container-title":["Polymers"],"original-title":[],"language":"en","link":[{"URL":"https:\/\/www.mdpi.com\/2073-4360\/17\/9\/1235\/pdf","content-type":"unspecified","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"similarity-checking"}],"deposited":{"date-parts":[[2025,10,9]],"date-time":"2025-10-09T17:25:27Z","timestamp":1760030727000},"score":1,"resource":{"primary":{"URL":"https:\/\/www.mdpi.com\/2073-4360\/17\/9\/1235"}},"subtitle":[],"short-title":[],"issued":{"date-parts":[[2025,4,30]]},"references-count":19,"journal-issue":{"issue":"9","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2025,5]]}},"alternative-id":["polym17091235"],"URL":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/polym17091235","relation":{},"ISSN":["2073-4360"],"issn-type":[{"value":"2073-4360","type":"electronic"}],"subject":[],"published":{"date-parts":[[2025,4,30]]}}}