New Zealand has enacted legislation to ban several types of products containing plastic. This will take effect on October 1, 2022.
In March 2022, New Zealand published the Waste Reduction (Plastics and Related Products) Regulations 2022, which bans certain plastic-containing products. See Table 1 for detailed requirements.
Table 1 Main content of the Waste Reduction (Plastics and Related Products) Regulations 2022
Prohibited Scope | effective date |
- Disposable plastic drink stirrer - Disposable plastic or synthetic cotton swabs 1 - Plastic products containing pro-degradants 2 - PVC food trays or containers 3 - Designated polystyrene packaging for food or beverages4 | October 1, 2022 |
1Limited derogations apply 2 Plastics containing additives that accelerate fragmentation (eg oxidatively degradable or photodegradable plastics). 3 Trays or containers containing polyvinyl chloride or polyvinylidene chloride and used as rigid and preformed packaging for any product that a) is or contains meat, fish, poultry or substitutes for these products, or b) is a fresh product, or c) is a freshly baked product and sold for retail sale. 4 Containing expanded polystyrene (EPS) or rigid polystyrene, used as containers or packaging for food or beverages: a) for immediate consumption, or b) in the case of EPS only, in other Way retail, but c) not rigid polystyrene lids for beverages. | |