Starbucks is Giving Away a Year’s Worth of Dairy-Free Drinks This Earth Month

Coffee giant Starbucks is hosting a Starbucks Earth Month Game that will give Starbucks Rewards members the opportunity to win a year’s supply of dairy-free drinks. Through April, Starbucks plans to spotlight the company’s efforts to create and develop planet-friendly choices between the new dairy alternatives and plant-based foods. The Earth Month Game accompanies the coffee company’s Plant Positive Initiative, promising to half its carbon, waste, and water footprints by 2030.

“Our Planet Positive initiatives have a central role in our long-term business strategy, and directly address what our customers are asking for,” CEO Kevin Johnson said. “We are moving toward a more circular economy and we are doing so in a very intentional, transparent, and accountable way.”

The new plant-forward game will feature multiple ways to play and win prizes. Starbucks Rewards members will be able to earn “plays” by making transactions at stores across the country with a limit to two plays per day. However, participants can achieve more “plays” by engaging in a variety of other weekly activities during April. Some examples of activities are reusing single-use straws, sampling the plant-based food options, reading articles regarding food and water waste, and voting for a favorite dairy-free beverage.

The month-long event will include a “Choice & Chance” sections where members participate in an instant win game. The participants can win an array of prizes including coupons for non-dairy beverages, discounts, reusable merchandise, and stars. Another section of the game features a “Play & Plant” portion that has players complete puzzles and vote on four different One Tree Planted reforestation projects. The winner of the Starbucks vote will receive a donation from the company that will plant 250,000 trees.

Starbucks adopted a more sustainable company model within the last couple of years, dedicating itself to reduce waste and the use of animal products companywide. The coffee chain claimed that within the next year, it would take a significant step to change its menu options and its production policies.

“If I were to say what is probably the most dominant shift in consumer behavior, [it] is this whole shift to plant-based [products],” Johnson said about Starbucks’ shifting menus. “And that is a shift both in beverage and in food.”

The company continues its pledge to modernize its products and expand its plant-based offerings. The company rolled out Oatly’s oat milk to its stores nationwide starting in March. The company’s inclusion of Oat milk experience immediate success, so much that Starbucks faced a temporary shortage in early April. Beyond the beverages, the coffee chain has developed a number of plant-based food options including the Impossible Breakfast Sandwich and the Chickpea Bites & Avocado Protein Box.

Earlier in the week, the Clueless actress Alicia Silverstone pleaded with Starbucks to remove the upcharge from its plant-based milk. She encouraged the company to change this policy to encourage more customers to leave dairy milk without worrying about a more expensive drink.

“If Starbucks hopes to meet its goal of reducing 50 percent of its carbon emissions, water use, and waste by 2030, then an obvious first step is to ensure that the environmentally friendly options are accessible to everyone by lowering the price of their non-dairy options, and no penalizing those of us who are already choosing the sustainable, kind products,” Silverstone said.