S’poreans Design ‘Chewy’ Reusable Straw That Hit 100% Funding in Less Than 1 Week

Straws are a much-debated topic in Singapore. Namely, the removal of straws from our favourite makan places.

Burger King & KFC, I’m looking at you.

In fact, it got so bad people were stealing straws from kopitiam to drink their KFC drinks.

And various outcry from gutsy Singaporeans.

Well, three enterprising Singaporeans decided to band together to create the ultimate reusable straw.

A straw that’s not only environmental-friendly but makes people want to use it too.

Introducing the Chewable Straw

How many of you chew on the end of your straws when you drink? I know I do. And for most of us, it’s an unconscious action.

Which could be a reason why metal straws aren’t being picked up by people.

In fact, it’s like the adult version of chut-chut (pacifier).

Enter Tommy Cheong, Kevin Yeo and Lim Jing Jie, a trio of Singapore-based designers and the founders of Chew Inc.

Their reusable straw comes with a rubber chewable tip. Food-grade rubber chewable tip, according to them.

So that you can chew to your heart’s content without spoiling your teeth.

And it can be dismantled for easy keeping.

So all you’re left with is a container the size of your smartphone.

But here’s the most interesting part

You know how reusable stuff has to be washed?

And putting a wet object into your pocket is like asking to get bacteria buildup and possibly, lip infection.

Not CHEW, though.

You can put the freshly-washed straw into the container and give it a spin.

Also perfect for when you’re feeling warm. Maybe.

It’s a Go on Kickstarter

Now, here’s the most impressive part of the entire project.

Similar to how innovative products are typically launched nowadays, Chew Inc brought their projects to Kickstarter, a crowdfunding site.

They’ve set an initial goal of S$20,000 for their straws. And in less than a week, they’ve hit their target.

And now, on 2 Nov, 9 days after their launch, they’ve gathered S$24,730.

And to be honest, once you go through their Kickstarter project page, you’d understand why.

Honestly, This is The Best Time For Such a Product

If you’re an alien who just landed on earth and wondered why we’re so obsessed with twenty-two guys chasing a ball and also why we’re reducing single-use plastic items, here’s why.

The first reason is simple: plastic takes a looooong time to break down. Unlike other materials, plastic would take 20 to 10,000 years to break down, which leads to the next point: the world is now filled with plastic.

No, I’m not referring to the noses of Korea stars who went under the knife, but literally plastic items. You see, Starbucks mentioned that they use 1 billion straws per year: if these straws take 10,000 years to break down, we’ll be seeing so many plastic waste that our kids might just stay beside a pile of plastic.

The third, and a pretty pressing one, is the impact of these plastic waste on wildlife animals. Here, take a look at this video of a sea turtle that sucked a straw in its nose.

The solution to that is to tell wild animals, especially marine life, not to eat plastic straws or plastic bags, but unless an animal whisperer has been found, this problem would lead to more endangered animals.

Good job, CHEW.