New Zealand banned the sale or production of single-use plastic swabs, drink stirrers and most plastic trays from October 1, 2022.
"These are the first of the most problematic plastic products that will be phased out over the next three years," said New Zealand's Environment Minister David Parker.
"Stopping the sale of these plastic products will reduce landfills, improve our recycling system, and encourage reusable or environmentally responsible alternatives."
Plastics whose sale will be banned from October 1, 2022 include.
Disposable plastic beverage stirrer
Disposable plastic cotton swabs
Polyvinyl chloride (PVC) prefabricated food trays and containers
Polystyrene takeaway packaging for food and beverage
Expanded polystyrene food and beverage retail packaging (e.g. foam take-out containers or some instant noodle cups)
Plastics containing additives that break up the plastic into microplastics
"On average, each New Zealander sends about 750 kilograms of waste to landfill each year. Some products cannot be recycled and are unnecessary," says David Parker.
"These are the first plastic products to be banned since single-use plastic bags were banned in 2019. That means more than a billion plastic bags have ended up in landfills or the ocean," said David Parker.
"The recently announced investment in the Plastics Innovation Fund, along with funding to help co-design the Plastic Packaging Product Stewardship Program, also demonstrates the government's commitment to addressing the problems caused by plastic waste," said David Parker.
By mid-2023, the next batch of single-use plastics to be phased out will include single-use plastic plates, bowls, cutlery, single-use plastic produce bags and non-compostable produce labels, with other PVC and polystyrene food and beverage packaging to be banned by mid-2025.
Action to minimise waste and problematic plastics is part of a partnership agreement between Labor and the Greens, building on the progress made as part of the previous government's confidence and supply agreement.
Phasing out single-use plastic shopping bags is the first step towards a plastic-free New Zealand," said Eugenie Sage, Green Party environment spokesperson. Today's announcement is a further step forward in achieving that vision.
"The phase-out of plastic shopping bags shows that we can easily make changes at the retail and household level to avoid plastic waste and better protect nature. We won't miss these plastic items when they're gone. With a little support and advice, it's easy to replace these unnecessary plastics with reusable products." She said.
