Starbucks ‘toilet water’ coffee brews up controversy

Van Sant, Ashley, 
"Starbucks ‘toilet water’ coffee brews up controversy." Photograph. q13fox. fox. 31. May. 2013. Web. 10. March. 2014. <http://q13fox.com/2013/05/31/starbucks-toilet-water-coffee-brews-up-controversy/#axzz2vCNpiDcc>.

A Starbucks in Hong Kong was brewing their coffee with water from a bathroom. On the website, it was reported that the Starbucks employees got the water from a wall-mounted faucet just feet away from the urinal. It turns out that the bathroom wasn't even in the Starbucks. It was in a neighboring garage where workers had to carry the water back and forth. Employees said it was the closest water supply. Health officials found out and issued a warning. The Hong Kong store now uses distilled water.

This article doesn't really connect to any of my classes. The only class that relates to this article is Civics and Economics. In Civics and Economics, we learned about a few different businesses and how to save money. I think that the Starbucks in Hong Kong used the wall-mounted faucet because it was a easier solution and they didn't have to waste on anything to be able to get clean water. If it weren't for the health officials finding out, they would probably still be using the faucet.

I think that this event is gross. They used a faucet that was feet away from a urinal. This affects me greatly because I love to go to Starbucks for coffee. Although, this happened in Hong Kong, it makes me wonder if the Starbucks that I usually go to is sanitary.

How does the author use language to advance her point of view? Use evidence from the selection to support your answer.
I think the author of the article doesn't really try to prove a point. She just states what happened. "A Starbucks in Hong Kong is apologizing for brewing their coffee with water from a bathroom, according to MSN.com."(Sant). This sentence is just stating what happened. "Employees said it was their closet water supply. (Sant). The author stated the reason that caused them to get water out of a faucet. At the end of the article, the author says, "The website reported that the Hong Kong store now uses distilled water." This evidence proves that the author didn't really try to show the reader what she felt about this event. She just said what happened. The author didn't even try to describe what she felt at the end of the article. But, I did notice that the author used some strong words in her sentences. For example, she used the word "apologized" in the first sentence I used as evidence. This made me feel like the author didn't feel gross about this event because she understood the reason why they did it. In the second sentence she stated the reason why they did this. She tried to prove to the reader that they did this because they didn't have no other close water supply. That they didn't have much options. Then at the end, she says that they're using distilled water now. Which means they corrected their mistake. Although the author didn't prove her point clearly, I think she understood the reason why the Starbucks in Hong Kong did this.


Van Sant, Ashley. "Starbucks ‘toilet water’ coffee brews up controversy."q13fox. Fox. 31. May. 2013.Web. 9. March. 2014. <http://q13fox.com/2013/05/31/starbucks-toilet-water-coffee-brews-up-controversy/#axzz2vCNpiDcc>.