Now Lubbock Restaurants Are Facing A Styrofoam Shortage

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You may have noticed at some Lubbock restaurants that styrofoam cups are looking a little different. Some places in Lubbock and really, throughout Texas, are limited to only one or two sizes of cups while other restaurants are having to use cups that come without logos.

The reason? You guessed it. The supply chain. Just like with other shortages we have seen in 2021 with ketchup, pickles, plastic forks and knives, now styrofoam products are seeing the squeeze from the supply chain problems.

I started noticing a problem last month when traveling back from the Dallas area when the Buc-ee's we stopped at were completely out of 44 ounce cups and other cups had logos on them. Since then, I've noticed places in Lubbock have had to cut back on the number of different sizes they offer for to-go drinks.

According to KAMC, the styrofoam issue has spread from cups to even to-go containers. KAMC reported on Friday that the reason goes back to the pandemic and the number of people that did take out orders.

John Severyn, general manager of Mayfield Paper Company, said this supply issue is one that have not seen in a long time. Severyn said the shortage was impacted by a high demand in Styrofoam amid the pandemic and people not able to work.
“During the COVID crisis in the country, we saw a lot of food service establishments go through drive thru or takeout only,” said Severyn, “The plants obviously had issues with workers having COVID, so their manufacturing capabilities in many cases were cut by 50%, but volume increased by three to 400%.”
Severyn said they’ve been looking for products in states that no longer allow styrofoam to offer it to clients in Lubbock.

Things will eventually get better, but this looks to be a trend that is going to continue for a while. So if you can't get the size drink you want, or even the type of to-go container you want, just know it isn't the restaurant's fault. This is happening all over the state and nation.

The Somewhat Small Towns of the Texas Panhandle

Say what now? Somewhat small?

That's right. These are the towns that seem massive when compared to teensy weensie two-stoplight towns like Pringle (30) or Kerrick (25), but they're definitely not on the same level as cities like White Deer or Panhandle....much less Amarillo.

Buckle up! We've got a places to go and towns to see! These populations are well over 100, but way less than 1000.

All aboard the Somewhat Small Texas Panhandle Towns tour!

The Legendary Stories Behind These Six Weird Texas Town Names

It's no secret that Texas is home to some pretty strange town names. While the names of these places are strange enough on their own, sometimes the story behind the name is even stranger.

Can You Guess These Towns From Their Satellite Photos?

I'm always down for a good brain challenge. This one however got the best of me.

It's always a fun time looking up address or cities and seeing them from a satellite point of view. You start pointing out landmarks and things you recognize.

One thing you don't account for however is something looking bigger or smaller than you seemed to think it was. So we started grabbing a bunch of these satellite pictures of cities and towns around Amarillo.

As we looked at them, we thought to ourselves, "how fun would this be to actually have to GUESS what these places are?". So away we went.

Go ahead and try to see how many you can guess correctly!