Stephanie Falk and her husband like smoothies from Jamba Juice. But the San Diego-based couple boycotted the chain for several months last year because it served its drinks in plastic foam cups.

斯蒂芬妮・福尔克(Stephanie Falk)和她的丈夫都喜欢Jamba Juice的奶昔。但是这对来自 地亚哥的夫妇去年连续数月拒绝购买这家连锁店的饮料，因为店里用泡沫塑料杯盛装饮料。

'It's the biodegradable factor. There's no excuse. Everybody knows better, ' said Ms. Falk, who like her husband is a wedding photographer.

“我们考虑的是生物降解。店家不该找借口。所有人都明白这一点，”福尔克说，她和丈夫都是婚礼摄影师。

Now, though, Jamba Juice Co. and several other food chains are starting to serve the same drinks in paper cups. Ms. Falk is a fan; her drink stays just as cold in Jamba Juice's new doubled-walled paper cup, she said.

而现在Jamba Juice和其他几家连锁餐厅都开始改用纸杯装饮料。福尔克表示支持，她说她的饮料在Jamba Juice的新双层纸杯里同样清凉。

The paper industry likes it a lot too. Production of white copy paper and other forms of 'uncoated' paper has fallen about 38% since 1999, while demand for paper cups is growing as much as 5% a year, according to industry analysts. Environmental concerns from consumers and new bans on plastic foam in more U.S. cities are prompting food chains to make a switch.

造纸行业对此也非常支持。行业分析师表示，1999年以来，白色复印纸以及其他“裸”纸的产量下降了约38%，而纸杯的需求量则以每年5%的幅度递增。消费者对于环保的考量以及美国越来越多城市对于泡沫塑料的禁令促使连锁餐厅做出改变。

Jamba Juice said last year it would adopt paper cups for its smoothies and other cold drinks 'to improve our environmental footprint.' McDonald's Corp. is replacing plastic foam cups with McCafe paper cups at all 14, 000 McCafes across the country. The company says it is trying to be more environmentally conscious and cut costs on trash. Dunkin' Brands Group Inc. has said it is testing paper cups.

Jamba Juice去年表示，他们将采用纸杯来装奶昔和其他冷饮，“以改善我们的环境记录”。麦当劳公司(McDonald's Corp.)正在将全美14,000家麦咖啡 (McCafe)的泡沫塑料杯替换成纸杯。该公司表示，他们现在更加注重环保并缩减垃圾处理开支。Dunkin' Brands Group Inc.说他们正在试用纸杯。

These companies join Starbucks Corp. and some other chains that have been using paper cups for years. Production of paper used to make cups has risen about 16% over the past five years in the U.S., according to industry group American Forest and Paper Association.

这些公司加入了星巴克等多年来都在使用纸杯的连锁店的行列。行业组织美国林业与纸业协会(American Forest and Paper Association)的数据显示，过去五年美国用于制造纸杯的纸类产量上升了约16%。

Hoping to take advantage of the growth in demand, International Paper Inc. plans to double the size of a paper-cup manufacturing facility it runs in Kenton, Ohio. The company is coming up with new cup designs--like one already in production that is fully biodegradable with a plant-based lining--and aggressively marketing the benefits of paper to potential customers.

为了迎合这种增长的需求，International Paper Inc.计划将位于俄亥俄州肯顿(Kenton)的纸杯生产设备规模扩大一倍。该公司将推出新的纸杯设计，例如已投产的一款可完全降解的纸杯，内层采用植物原料；他们还努力向潜在客户营销，强调纸杯的优势。

Paper cup and plate production volume is equivalent to about a quarter of the volume of the U.S. copy-paper market, according to consulting firm Fisher International Inc., which specializes in data on the pulp and paper industry.

咨询公司Fisher International Inc.专长于纸类和纸浆行业的数据分析，其数据显示，美国纸杯和纸碟的产量相当于复印纸产量的四分之一。

Still, 'It seems like a moment in time where the big brands are choosing to take a public position for sustainability, ' said Michael Lenihan, director of sales and customer relations at International Paper. Food businesses 'are now recognizing it as a brand opportunity on a much broader scope.'

不过，“似乎现在大品牌都选择站在公众立场来关注可持续发展”，International Paper 销售与客户关系总监迈克尔・勒尼汉(Michael Lenihan)说。食品行业“如今在更广的层面上将其视为品牌的发展机遇”。

Environmental advocates say paper is easier on the environment than plastic foam because the latter tends to break up in landfills and then is mistaken by animals for food. Plastic foam is difficult to recycle unless it is kept clean and separated from other types of plastics--so many plants in the U.S. don't take it. It isn't biodegradable.

环保者表示纸杯比泡沫塑料杯更有利于环境，因为后者会在填埋时碎裂而被动物误以为食物。泡沫塑料很难回收，除非它仍然干 并且和其他类型的塑料分离，所以美国的许多回收站并不接受它。它也无法进行生物降解。

Such worries led San Francisco in 2007 and Seattle in 2009 to ban plastic foam, instead requiring food vendors to provide compostable or recyclable to-go containers. Other West Coast cities have followed suit, and New York's City Council voted to ban plastic-foam containers in December unless the industry can prove it is recyclable.

出于这样的担忧，旧金山在2007年、西雅图在2009年禁止使用泡沫塑料，而要求食品销售者提供可分解或者可循环使用的外带容器。其他西海岸的城市紧随其后，纽约市议会2013年12月投票禁止使用泡沫塑料容器，除非业者能够证明泡沫塑料可以回收。

'Customers are still trying to figure out how prevalent this is going to become, ' says Alec Frisch, vice president and general manager of Georgia-Pacific LLC's beverage category, which produces a range of paper cups, including double-walled and plastic-coated paper cups.

“消费者仍在关注此类措施的普及情况”，乔治亚・太平洋公司(Georgia-Pacific LLC)负责饮品类的副总裁兼总经理亚力克・弗里施(Alec Frisch)说。该公司生产各种纸杯，包括双层纸杯以及外层覆有塑料的纸杯。

The plastic-foam industry disputes the notion that foam is less environmentally friendly, chalking it up to misinformation. 'I think there are a lot of misconceptions around polystyrene foam versus paper, ' said Keith Christman, managing director for plastics markets at American Chemistry Council, which represents the industry. Foam is 'composed 95% out of air, so you use less material in the first place making it.' That also results in less energy use and less bulk waste, he added.

泡沫塑料行业对于产品不环保的观点并不认同，认为这是误传。“我认为人们在将泡沫塑料和纸比较时存在许多误解，”行业协会美国化学理事会(American Chemistry Council)塑料市场运营总监基思・克里斯特曼(Keith Christman)说。泡沫塑料“95%由空气组成，所以在最初的生产环节可节省用料”。这也减少了能耗以及废料体积，他补充道。

A survey commissioned by the ACC shows that in the 50 biggest U.S. cities, about 16% of the population is able to recycle food-service items made out of foam, compared with about 10% for paper.

美国化学理事会开展的一项调查显示，在美国前50大城市中，16%的人会回收泡沫塑料制成的食品容器，相比之下纸制的回收率为10%。

Indeed, paper cups aren't as environmentally friendly as they seem. Only about 11% of recycling plants in the U.S. currently can recycle them, according to the American Forest and Paper Association, because they are typically coated in plastic or have beverage residue. The lack of an 'easily recyclable cup designed for hot beverages' is one reason Dunkin' Brands is still weighing whether to switch to paper, Karen Raskopf, chief communications officer, said.

事实上，纸杯并不像看起来那样环保。美国林业及纸业协会的数据显示，目前美国只有约11%的回收站能够回收纸杯，因为它们通常有塑料覆膜或者有饮料残留。缺少“适合热饮的易回收的纸杯”是Dunkin' Brands仍旧在权衡是否换为纸杯的原因之一，首席公关卡伦・拉斯科普夫(Karen Raskopf)说。

'At this point, we don't know if our end solution will be paper or another material, ' she added.

“现在我们还不知道最终解决方案会是纸还是其他材料，”她补充道。

McDonald's has been using double-walled paper cups--which have a small pocket of air between them to increase insulation--at about 2, 000 restaurants along the West Coast since 2012. Now it is expanding into the Midwest and parts of the East Coast, says Ian Olson, director of sustainability.

麦当劳从2012年起在美国西海岸的约2,000家餐厅使用双层纸杯，两层之间有空隙可容纳空气从而增强隔热效果。如今使用范围扩展到了中西部以及东海岸部分地区，可持续发展总监伊恩・奥尔森(Ian Olson)说。

While the paper cup is more expensive, McDonald's says it will make up the difference in the trash. Most of the chain's waste is paper-based--think wraps, fry cartons and Big Mac boxes--so paper cups can go into the same trash bin, and eventually into recycling bins.

麦当劳表示，尽管纸杯更贵，但它在垃圾处理方面的优势可以补偿其高价格。这家连锁餐厅的大部分垃圾都是纸制的――比如包装纸、薯条盒和汉堡盒――所以纸杯可以放入相同的垃圾桶，最终进入回收桶。

The main challenge for food companies is to find a cup that functions as well as plastic foam and doesn't cost the consumer more, said Bonnie Riggs, a restaurant industry analyst with consumer market research firm NPD Group. 'I think it really doesn't matter if it keeps everything hot and keeps everything cold and consumers don't have to pay extra for it, ' she said.

食品公司面临的最大挑战是找到一款和泡沫塑料功能相同又不增加成本的杯子，消费者市场研究公司NPD集团的餐饮业分析师邦尼・里格斯(Bonnie Riggs)说。“我认为只要能保冷保热，而且消费者不用额外付钱，什么样的杯子都没关系，”她说。