With a research facility and in nine pilot stores, Starbucks plans to test more climate-friendly store concepts in the Phoenix, Arizona, area.
Starbucks wants to go greener. The US coffee chain plans to open a research and innovation facility in December in partnership with Arizona State University. Nine licensed Starbucks stores under Aramark management will serve as pilots to test more climate-friendly store concepts.
The project is designed to help Starbucks become
more climate-friendly in both its
facility design and its beverage and food offerings, including plant-based foods and protein sources. At Arizona State University's four campuses
in the Phoenix area, contract caterer Aramark operates nine licensed Starbucks stores. The findings and
strategies resulting from the research will be
tested and evaluated there.
Tests at the stores include new plant-based food and beverage offerings to
reduce emissions that harm the climate, strategies to
improve recycling and reusability of materials, and new technologies such as
artificial intelligence and
machine learning. Starbucks Chief Executive Kevin Johnson said, "As we continually focus on improving the Starbucks experience, introducing new and exciting beverage innovations, and reshaping the customer experience both in-store and through personalized digital relationships, we are constantly challenging ourselves to find new ways to give back more than we take in, and to use our power at scale to create a better society in which we all live."