Making the switch to sustainable products
Single-use plastics will be banned from sale or supply in Victoria by February 2023.
What are single-use plastics and what will be banned from February 2023?
- drinking straws
- cutlery including knives, forks, spoons, chopsticks, sporks, splades, food picks and sporks
- plates
- drink stirrers and sticks
- cotton bud sticks
- expanded polystyrene food and drink service containers including plates, cups, bowls, clam shells and any cover or lid.
- All forms of plastic can be bad for the environment when littered.
What types of plastics will be included in the ban?
All forms of plastic can be bad for the environment when littered.
Single-use plastic drinking straws, cutlery, plates, drink stirrers and cotton bud sticks made from conventional, degradable and compostable materials, including bioplastic and oxo-degradable materials, are proposed to be banned. The ban will also apply to food and drink containers made from expanded polystyrene.
It is proposed that the single-use plastics ban includes compostable plastic items because these items can still harm wildlife the same way conventional plastic items do, if they are littered. Many compostable plastics require processing at a specialised compost facility in order to break down.
What can be used instead of single-use plastics?
Avoid single-use plastics where possible and choose reusable alternatives instead. If you cannot avoid or use reusable items, then choose single-use items made from alternative materials such as Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certified paper, wood or bamboo. More information can be found here.
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