Soon Restaurants in New York To Ban Plastic Utensils & Condiments In Takeaways

This seems to be the global trend — banning the manufacture, sale and use of single-use plastic items like plates, cups, straws, trays and polystyrene. In India too it has been banned but some states like Maharashtra under pressure from the business fraternity have relaxed it. The latest news comes from New York. The extra but convenient plastic cutlery, chopsticks and sauce packets that restaurants throw in your takeout bag may soon disappear for good as New York City’s City Council has just passed a bill that would bar eateries and food delivery services from providing this accouterment unless specifically requested. Those businesses that keep including these items regularly, would be subject to civil penalties but warnings, instead of a monetary penalty, would be given for any violation occurring before July 1, 2024. The hope is to cut down on single-use plastic that can’t be recycled and ends up in landfills and take away the financial burden of purchasing these items from small businesses. Every year, more than 320 million tons of plastic are consumed globally, with 95% of plastic only used once and 14% for recycling. By arrangement with tfninternational.com.