To further complement its commitment to eliminate single-use, nonbiodegradable straws and stirrers from the beverage business, New York-based Pernod Ricard USA is collaborating with New York-based LOLIWARE and its co-founders Chelsea Briganti and Leigh Ann Tucker to reimagine the cocktail consumption experience through the use of the recently launched LOLISTRAW, a hypercompostable fully edible straw.

Founded in 2014, LOLIWARE is dedicated to replacing plastic with hypercompostable, edible materials derived from seaweed. The company's mission is to innovate products that are “designed to disappear,” the company says. The co-founders commented: "Our world needs a radically new approach to our daily consumption of single-use plastics which too often go to landfill. Our solutions transform disposables into 'plant fuel' through composting, or 'human fuel' through consumption."

A plastic straw, which is only used on average for 20 minutes, can take more than 200 years to break down into smaller pieces and often does not fully disintegrate, the company says. LOLISTRAW is designed to help replace the millions of straws and stirrers used in the United States, and around the world, every day.

"We are excited to see where the relationship takes us," said John Tran, director of sustainability and responsibility at Pernod Ricard USA, in a statement. "Plastic straws can have a large environmental impact to marine life and oceans. Eliminating our use is only half the battle; offering alternatives that reimagine how straws are made, used, and converted to energy is the next step for genuine transformational change. Supporting LOLIWARE is part of our commitment to a low-carbon, circular economy."

Pernod Ricard USA's 2020 Roadmap initiative also focuses on eliminating all operational waste by 2020 and encouraging consumers to share waste best practices. LOLISTRAW contributes to this objective as the straws can be consumed or composted at the end of their use, the company says.