The Story of the Drinking Straws

Well, since time immemorial, the invention has always been the mother of necessity. With this same principle, Marvin Stone ended up inventing the straw. He was in the company of a few friends in the late 1800s as they sipped a mint julep and he seemed not to enjoy it. As a result, Marvin was quick to pick a natural rye grass and used it as a drinking straw. However, Marvin was not content with the fact that the ryegrass straw ended up adding some residue and consequently, an unfamiliar taste to his drink. With definiteness of purpose in his mind, he sought out to transform his drinking patterns. This article looks at how Marvin invented the drinking straws and how they have gradually transformed over time to the present paper straws.

After the idea struck his mind, Marvin Stone set out to create the perfect straw that was not made of ryegrass. He was able to start off with a paper wrapped around a pencil and then curled the paper with glue. Thrilled with the success of his idea, he was able to mess around with numerous crafts and finally, he patented a paraffin-coated version in 1888. This straw was 8.5 inches long and redefined drinking of beverages. This paper straw became an instant hit. Marvin also owned a cigarette holder company which was quickly overtaken by the hand-wound paper straws.

In 1906, a rebranded Stone Straw Corporation invented the machine to manufacture the paper straws in large scales. The machine and technique became ideal for spinning other materials into straws. In the mid-20th century, Joseph Friedman perfected this art and made the paper straws more convenient. In this, it was even possible to bend them as one drank their drink. However, in the 60s and 70s, the globe began to plasticize different industries. The paper straw industry was not left behind, and this led to the plastic drinking straws that many are accustomed to.

It was not until in the last few decades when different societies around the globe realized the huge negative impacts of plastics. Due to this, environmental conservation campaigns have since been numerous and aim at creating awareness on these negative impacts. For instance, in the United Kingdom alone, approximately 8.5 billion plastic straws are thrown away annually, leading to pollutions in oceans or even beaches. As a result, there has been constant wake up calls with regards to the use of paper straws such as those at paper straws king. Multinational companies are quickly adopting the use of the paper straws, which are biodegradable, recyclable, and come in flexible in designs. It takes us back to Marvin Stone’s paper straw inventions, which this time around are more versatile and readily available online in the digital world.