No more plastic utensils, ketchup packets? Red Bank law aims to cut down on takeout waste

RED BANK - The borough will celebrate this Earth Day with its annual Green Fair and a crackdown on takeout waste.

Dubbed “Skip the Stuff,” restaurants will no longer automatically add plastic utensils, condiment packets, napkins or extra takeout containers for takeout or delivery orders.

Starting Monday, April 22 — Earth Day — customers will have to request the extra items if they want them with their order. The goal is to get customers to actively think about the items they need.

“The restaurants save money and it results in less waste happening,” Councilmember Nancy Facey-Blackwood said.

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She added that New York City voted to enact a similar ban on takeout waste in 2023.

Bob Zuckerman, executive director of the Red Bank RiverCenter, which promotes the borough’s downtown businesses, said there were a few initial concerns. However, the local law would not affect self-service fast-food restaurants.

“Sometimes change is hard,” Zuckerman said. “People get into their systems of doing things and sometimes it’s hard to effect change.”

He said borough restaurants will comply by adding in a box on food delivery apps for the additional items.

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He said, “we look forward to less plastic around.”

Full enforcement of the takeout ban will not take place until July 1.

“Single-use plastic bags are only used for 12 minutes and 50% of plastic waste generated was plastic packaging,” Facey-Blackwood said. “So, it’s about reducing the packaging, reducing the waste. Because plastic cutlery is too small to be recycled, it just ends up sitting in the landfill forever.”

The borough will also host its annual Green Fair at Red Bank Middle School from 5 to 7 p.m. on April 22.

“We invite different kinds of organizations to talk about what they do to help the Earth,” Facey-Blackwood said.

The workshop topics include experimental gardening, upcycling and public transit.

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Olivia Liu is a reporter covering transportation, Red Bank and western Monmouth County. She can be reached at [email protected].

This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press: Red Bank bans takeout plastic utensils, condiments unless diner asks