New Yorkers will now notice something missing from their takeout food orders.
Restaurants are now prohibited from providing plastic utensils, packet condiments and napkins in food orders—unless customers specifically ask for them—under new regulations that took effect July 31, which stems from a law passed by the City Council earlier this year.
The “Skip the Stuff” legislation, sponsored by Bronx Council Member Marjorie Velázquez, was passed on Feb. 1 by a 43-7 margin, and is designed to reduce waste stemming from to-go orders.
According to the International Union for Conservation of Nature, plastic from takeout food orders account for around 20 million metric tons of plastic pollution each year.
Restaurants will only receive warnings for providing single-use items without request at this point, with monetary penalties of between $50 and $250 going into effect on July 1, 2024.
“The ‘Skip the Stuff’ legislation is a great example of smart, green policy that will allow us to reduce waste and help our city’s small businesses save on costs,” said Council Speaker Adrienne Adams when the bill was passed.
The Department of Consumer and Worker Protection is tasked with enforcement of the new measure.
Third-party delivery services, such as GrubHub and UberEats, have already announced plans to facilitate ways that consumers can request items when ordering food — allowing anyone planning to eat on the go to get silverware, napkins, chopsticks or plastic-wrapped condiments with their meal. The default option, however, is that they will not be included, as mandated by the Council’s law.
Velázquez, for her part, hailed the measure as both good for the environment and for local businesses’ bottom lines.
“[This] will put money back into the pockets of our small businesses while also minimizing our City’s carbon footprint and make New York a more sustainable city,” said Velázquez. “If we continue the use of single-use plastics and other additions, we will feel the negative repercussions through our environment and our local businesses. We must work together to keep and maintain a clean city, not just for ourselves, but for future generations.”
Andrew Rigie, the executive director of the NYC Hospitality Alliance, which advocates for the interests of restaurants in the Big Apple, also praised the measure, saying the cost savings would be a boon for businesses.
“We’re always concerned about over-regulation of small businesses, but the ‘Skip the Stuff’ bill is unique in that it will help our restaurants save money by reducing the number of single-use plastic utensils and condiment packages they give out that often go unused, while also reducing the plastic garbage that ends up in our waste system, in our waterways, and on our streets.” said Rigie.
The measure comes after a series of other initiatives taken up by the city and state to limit waste — including banning plastic bags, and limiting plastic straws.
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