The environmental cost of being Brian Niccol, Starbucks' new CEO

Starbucks, known for its strong stance on sustainability, is facing a wave of criticism over the environmental implications of its incoming CEO, Brian Niccol's super commute.

Niccol, who resides in Newport Beach, California, is set to commute to Starbucks' Seattle headquarters three times a week via a corporate jet.

Starbucks’ offer letter to Niccol said, “During your employment with the company, you will not be required to relocate to the company’s headquarters … You agree to commute from your residence to the company’s headquarters (and engage in other business travel) as is required to perform your duties and responsibilities.”

Speaking to CNBC, a Starbucks spokesperson said that Niccol will be expected to work from Starbucks’ Seattle office at least three days a week in line with the company’s hybrid work policies.

Niccol, brought in to replace Laxman Narasimhan, has also been offered one of the most attractive pay packages at his new workplace which highlights the value the former CEO of American fast food major Chipotle Mexican Grill promises to add to the coffee chain currently struggling with declining sales and revenue.

According to a Securities and Exchange Commission filing, Niccol will receive a base salary of $1.6 million annually. Additionally, he will be eligible for cash bonuses ranging from $3.6 million to $7.2 million, depending on performance targets.

However, as Niccol takes the helm of the global coffee giant, his commute poses significant environmental concerns, potentially undermining the company's green initiatives.

The environmental impact of Niccol's commute

Niccol's daily commute between Newport Beach and Seattle, approximately 1,600 kilometers each way, is set to generate a significant carbon footprint.

According to the European Environment Agency (EEA), a typical private jet emits about 2.5 kilograms of CO2 per kilometer flown.

With a round-trip distance of 3,200 kilometers, Niccol's commute could result in emissions of up to 8,000 kilograms of CO2 per day.

If Niccol commutes three times a week, this could amount to approximately 1,152 tonnes of CO2 annually.

To put things in perspective, according to The Nature Conservancy, the average carbon footprint in the United States is 16 tonnes per person, still much higher than the global average.

It has estimated that the average global carbon footprint should be less than 2 tonnes per person per year by 2050 to avoid a 2 degree celsius rise in global temperatures which would help prevent climate change from becoming irreversible. 

According to a report released by Oxfam last year, the carbon footprint of the 0.1% – including their use of private jets and superyachts – is 77 times higher than the upper level required for global warming to peak at 1.5C.

Moreover, private jets are up to 14 times more polluting, per passenger, than commercial planes and 50 times more polluting than trains, according to a 2021 report by the European Federation for Transport and Environment.

Source: Statista

What are Starbucks' sustainability goals and objectives?

Niccol's projected emissions are starkly at odds with Starbucks' sustainability initiatives, which include ambitious goals to cut carbon, water, and waste footprints by 50% by 2030.

In a unique initiative, the company has started a new policy starting 2024, wherein customers in all Starbucks stores across the US and Canada will be able to use their personal reusable cup wherever they order, including in café, drive-thru or mobile order and pay.

It also set a goal for the cups to be 100% compostable, recyclable, or reusable; sourced from 50% recycled materials; and made using 50% less virgin fossil fuel derived sources by 2030.

The company is also encouraging establishment of EV chargers at its outlets and last month partnered with Mercedez-Benz to install high-powered EV chargers at more than 100 Starbucks stores across the country.

"Starbucks sustainability journey has been driven by bold aspirations and a comprehensive approach. Today, our goal is to become resource-positive, storing more carbon than we emit, replenishing more freshwater than we use, and eliminating waste. We set targets to cut our carbon, water, and waste footprints in half by 2030," Michael Kobori, chief sustainability officer at Starbucks has stated in its commitment.

Public backlash and social media outrage

The decision to allow Niccol to commute via private jet has not gone unnoticed. Social media users were quick to point out the apparent hypocrisy of Starbucks' sustainability messaging in light of this environmentally damaging commute.

Criticism poured in, with many highlighting the disconnect between Starbucks' green initiatives and the environmental impact of Niccol's travel.

A user wrote on X, formerly Twitter, "Starbucks’ incoming CEO, Brian Niccol, will embark on an extraordinary daily commute of 1,600 kilometers. He’s 50-year-old, who resides in California, will travel daily to the company’s headquarters in Seattle. Is this corporate hypocrisy at its peak—Starbucks introducing paper straws and cups while pushing towards sustainability?"

Another wrote, "Absolutely wild that it cost $85 million in cash/stock to pry this guy from Chipotle and then they'll just let him thrash the environment to commute 1000 miles 3 times a week on a corporate jet instead of having him move to the PNW."

Niccol joins ranks of other globe-trotting elites criticised for their carbon footprint

Niccol's work arrangement, though bizzarre, only adds him to a list of other celebrities, businessmen and government officials whose frequent travel in private jets have caused the world to sit up and take notice.

Earlier this year, singing sensation Taylor Swift's frequent travels in private jets to watch rumoured boyfriend- Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce play at various games raised eyebrows. The pop star allegedly produced 138 tonns of CO2 emmissions in three months while commuting to visit Kelce, Newsweek reported.

Elon Musk, Bill Gates, Leonardo DiCaprio and many others have periodically gotten attention for their travel on private jets.

According to a report published last year by the Institute for Policy Studies and the nonprofit group Patriotic Millionaires, Musk's carbon footprint from his 171 private flights in 2022 was 132 times the size of the average US resident's total annual footprint from all activities.

His private plane burned about 221,358 gallons of jet fuel and emitted about 2,112 metric tons of carbon emissions in the year, the report found.