News On Japan

McDonald's Japan to End Paper Straws

TOKYO, Oct 27 (News On Japan) - McDonald's Japan announced it will phase out the use of paper straws and introduce new lids that allow customers to drink directly from the cup without a straw starting on November 19th.

The new lids are made from recycled plastic derived from used PET bottles and are designed to prevent spills and leaks, even for delivery and takeout orders.

In addition, McDonald's will gradually introduce environmentally friendly shopping bags—already implemented in Nagasaki Prefecture—to its stores nationwide.

Since 2022, the company has been making a series of changes to its containers and packaging materials, estimating that these efforts will reduce the use of new plastic by approximately 6,600 tons per year.

Source: FNN

News On Japan
POPULAR NEWS

Rain will affect many parts of Japan mainly through the morning on Tuesday, before clearer skies return in the afternoon. However, yellow sand blowing in from the Asian continent is expected to spread across a wide area after the rain, raising concerns over reduced visibility and worsening health conditions. Daytime temperatures will climb, with many areas in Kanto expected to reach 25C or higher.

Japan's weather agency and the Cabinet Office issued a 'Hokkaido-Sanriku Offshore Subsequent Earthquake Advisory' after an earthquake measuring upper 5 on Japan's seismic intensity scale struck off Sanriku.

JR East has launched a preview version of its new online Shinkansen booking platform, JRE GO, promising reservations in as little as one minute and easier handling of sudden schedule changes.

A bear that had remained in a residential area in central Sendai since early Sunday morning was euthanized last night in an emergency cull. No injuries were reported.

Police investigating the death of an 11-year-old boy whose body was found in a forest in Kyoto Prefecture believe his father moved the remains between several locations over a number of days in an apparent attempt to conceal the crime.

MEDIA CHANNELS
         

MORE Business NEWS

China's exports of rare-earth magnets to Japan in March fell 17.3% from the previous month to 184 tons, China's General Administration of Customs said on April 20.

A shortage of naphtha, a key petrochemical feedstock used in a wide range of products, is pushing up the cost of housing materials in Japan and raising concerns that home prices could climb by as much as 30%.

Running a business with integrity and good values is the highest road most owners strive to be on. However, sometimes being good isn’t enough to spare you from legal trouble.

TOTO said on April 16 that it will gradually resume new orders for its unit bath products from April 20 after securing a clearer outlook for raw material procurement.

Tokyo’s and Osaka’s flagship theme parks are both marking their 25th anniversaries this year, raising expectations that milestone celebrations could provide a boost to visitor numbers and earnings.

As tensions in the Middle East continue, 42 vessels linked to Japan remain stranded in the Persian Gulf, raising concerns over supply chains for naphtha, a key raw material used in plastics and coatings, with manufacturers warning that prolonged disruptions could drive up prices for everyday goods and housing materials.

The Japan Painting Contractors Association has requested the government to secure stable supplies of materials, warning that concerns over shortages of paint and thinner derived from naphtha have become increasingly severe.

Crude oil futures surged sharply as concerns over supply disruptions intensified amid renewed uncertainty surrounding the situation in Iran, pushing prices above $105 per barrel on April 12th and driving Japan long-term interest rates—represented by the benchmark 10-year government bond yield—to their highest levels in nearly three decades.