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“It can’t be that hard, right? Buy some machines, paper, and glue, and we’ll be good to go.” “Paper straws have to be basically selling themselves right now with all the new regulations.” “We already have a successful manufacturing company, so what could go wrong?”

Before you get ahead of yourself, let me answer that question for you. A lot. A lot could go wrong, a lot has gone wrong, and a lot is yet to go wrong. That’s the nature of business and manufacturing.

Ordering the machines was a hurdle. A hurdle that we thought would be the most difficult. Then we were faced with an even larger one, finding the best paper. After months of testing different paper straw and mill options, we were finally getting all our ducks in a row. Then came the glue. Luckily, or perhaps unluckily, there weren’t many options to choose from. We went with what seemed best and were on our way to production. That is, until we actually tried running the machine.

Even after having an assistant from the machine manufacturer in our facility for a week, we were still at a loss. With so many moving parts, there was no way to learn every possible thing that could go wrong in five short days. And, just to be clear, we didn’t. It took another eight weeks before we were able to run one full production day without any major setbacks. The good news? Our production is now fine-tuned and running like a charm (see our production videos below). The bad news? Well, we can’t sell the darn things!

Single-use plastics, specifically plastic straws, are being outlawed all over the world, yet here we are with over a million straws in stock and nobody willing to buy them. It doesn’t make sense. We know our straws are fantastic quality (see more on our quality here), our prices are at or below market average, and we have pledged all these altruistic efforts to give back to the environment and gain footing in the market. We’ve tried local sales, in-state sales, and nationwide sales, all to no avail. If nothing else, we learned a lot from our hundreds of failed attempts to sell.

The first thing we learned is that we are too early in the market. Many of the plastic straw bans don’t go into effect for another year or so, meaning that many restaurants, hotels, and resorts are stocking up on plastic straws while they can. The second thing we learned is that, as a society, we are extremely resistant to change and demand convenience. There were a handful of businesses that already tried switching to paper straws when they first started coming back around. Customers despised these paper straws, because, let’s be honest, they were terrible. This gave the business an ill-feeling toward paper straws and made them switch back to plastic (booooo!).

 All single-use plastic is going to be banned nationwide eventually. Why not get ahead of the game and buy now before all the quality options are booked up?

Who wants to deal with a paper straw that falls apart right away? We don’t, and we can bet that you and your customers don’t either. That makes it hard to trust the cheesy paper straw salespeople who claim to have “quality” and “long-lasting” straws. At some point it goes in one ear and out the other, right? That’s why we set out to PROVE our quality instead of just TELLING it.

The photos above show the end result after our paper straws sat in water from Friday at noon until Monday at noon. One straw started in room temperature water and the other started in cold water. As proven by the photos, both paper straws are still fully intact 72 hours later. Now that’s something to brag about!

Our quality shows not only in our straws, but also in our price. Even with all the altruistic efforts we have pledged to abide by, we were still able to price our paper straws at or below the market average.

If you’re still on the fence about our straws, think about what every purchase from us goes toward. First, it contributes to our fund to plant trees in US National Parks. Second, it supports a company dedicated to maintaining and creating jobs within the United States. Third, it gets you paper straws that are both soil biodegradable and seawater biodegradable. Fourth, it gives our great grandchildren the chance to have a healthy Earth without plastic clogging the grounds and seas. Fifth, it decreases the demand for single-use plastic straws which in turn reduces the supply. Sixth, it gives you the peace of mind knowing that you are getting a truly high-quality paper straw. Seventh, it gives you eternal bragging rights that you supported a small and family-owned company.

We’ll be honest, we aren’t sure why you would ever buy from anyone else.

The movement to ban single-use plastic is growing exponentially. That is why it’s more important than ever to find sustainable alternatives to everyday products such as straws, utensils, take-out containers, and more. This push led to the reappearance of the formerly prominent paper straw. These simple, yet effective, utensils are taking the world by storm and demanding a presence in all markets.

The Paper Straw Factory spent months testing various straws and papers before settling on a mill. The sustainably harvested paper used to manufacture our paper straws is both soil biodegradable and seawater biodegradable. That means that our paper straws will biodegrade within a few months instead of clogging our grounds and seas throughout our great grandchildren’s lifetimes. 

Soil Biodegradable Certificate | Seawater Biodegradable Certificate