Bars in Italy have started using pasta straws – we think it's a great idea

We all know by now that plastic straws are evil. For a while, companies have been trying to come up with new ways to make sure straws have less of a negative impact on the environment.

McDonald's have (mostly successfully) switched out their plastic straws for paper ones, and other big companies are following suit.

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Tell me about Stroodles pasta straws

What Stroodles are doing is a little different. They're making straws out of pasta. Not only do they reduce the use of plastic and paper, they can be eaten after use.

As well as looking cool, Stroodles are made from wheat and water, which makes them 100% vegan and biodegradable. The only thing to watch out for is if you have a gluten allergy.

The company has said each straw can be used for up to one hour (meaning you should/or shouldn't see how many Long Island Ice-teas you can slurp up in that time). They are also tasteless, which is a good thing. And after use, they can be sent straight to the compost, or you can eat them.

Stroodles appeared on Dragons Den, and have since raised more than £200,000 on CrowdCube, a crowdfunding site.

Now, I don't know about you, but I think this is a cracking idea and I am sure it will catch on. The straw market is currently worth a whopping $4.5bn, so there's definitely a big slice of the pie to take, if not the whole blimmin' thing.

What do you make of these?