Reducing Single-Use & Takeaway Items

The City has developed resources to help businesses eliminate the unnecessary use of single-use and takeaway items and wants to recognize businesses that are already taking a leadership role in eliminating these items.

There are some easy ways to reduce your use of single-use and takeaway items. Download and display these posters in your home or workplace as a reference to the information provided below.

Let’s choose to reduce single-use items 

Reduce single-use items in your business

Single-use accessory items (such as eating utensils, straws, stir sticks, condiment packets, napkins, and beverage takeout trays)

• Say “no thanks” to single-use items when they are offered
• Only accept single-use items if you need them
• When ordering via apps or online, specify items that you don’t need
• Carry a fork, spoon, cloth napkin and reusable straw in your bag or purse

Single-use cups and containers, foam (expanded polystyrene) cups and containers, black plastic containers, and plastic or plastic-lined items labelled as compostable or biodegradable

• Bring your own reusable containers and travel mugs
• Bring containers when dining out in case you have leftovers
• Ask restaurants if they have reusable containers that you can borrow or rent
• Ask for a reusable cup or dish when dining in

Shopping bags (paper and plastic)

• Bring your own reusable bags or tote boxes

Why it is important to reduce single-use and take-away items.

• Single-use accessory items (such as eating utensils, straws, stir sticks, condiment packets, napkins, and beverage takeout trays) are generally not recyclable or compostable, and are common litter items.
• Single-use and takeaway items require valuable resources and energy to produce, collect, process and dispose of.
• The federal government has published the Single-Use Plastic Prohibition Regulations which officially prohibit the manufacture, sale, import and export of six plastic manufactured items:
  • bags
  • stir sticks
  • six-pack rings
  • eating utensils
  • straws
  • food service ware made from or containing problematic plastics, such as extruded or expanded polystyrene foam, polyvinyl chloride, oxo-degradable plastics, and black plastic containers
• Foam containers can have serious impacts on the environment because they break down into little pieces that are easily ingested by fish and animals.
• Foam containers are difficult and costly to recycle.
• Black plastic cannot be sorted mechanically at the City’s recycling facility, so is not accepted in the Blue Bin Recycling Program and is sent to landfill.
• Take-out containers that are soiled with food and other residue can contaminate otherwise clean recyclables, resulting in entire loads being sent to landfill.
• Plastic items labelled as compostable and biodegradable, as well as plastic lined products, such as hot beverage cups, that are put in the Green Bin are screened out and end up in landfill. The Green Bin program was designed primarily to handle food waste as well as some fibre/paper products (like tissue and paper towel). It was not designed to process single-use items, products or packaging – even those labelled compostable or biodegradable. Learn more about what should go into your green bin.
• Plastic items labelled as compostable and biodegradable are not recyclable, as they are made of materials that are meant to break down quickly as opposed to conventional plastics, which have a much longer lifespan and can be recycled into a new product. Once recyclables are collected and sorted, they are baled and sold to partially offset the operational costs. Plastic items labelled as compostable and biodegradable will lower the quality of the plastic bales making them less valuable and more difficult to sell.

The Single-Use and Takeaway Items Reduction Strategy – Stage 1 staff report  was approved by Toronto City Council in June 2021.

A Voluntary Measures Program (Program) is the first stage of the Reduction Strategy. The Program encourages businesses to voluntarily implement actions to reduce single-use and takeaway items. This includes:

• adoption of an “ask-first/by-request” approach for items such as bags, straws and eating utensils
• businesses accepting reusable takeout containers and beverage cups
• incentives and recognition from the City of Toronto for businesses that voluntary adopt measures to reduce single-use and takeaway items.

COVID-19 Considerations

The City is taking into consideration the social, financial, and health-related impacts of the reduction measures on Toronto residents and businesses as a result of COVID-19.

Government of Canada

In June 2022, the federal government published the Single-use Plastic Prohibition Regulations which officially prohibit the manufacture, sale import and export of six plastic manufactured items.

Reducing single-use and takeaway items supports recommendations established in the City’s Long Term Waste Management Strategy (Waste Strategy), which was adopted by City Council in July 2016.

The Waste Strategy places priority on reducing waste and minimizing the amount sent to landfill, and directs the City to explore where greater waste reduction can be achieved through:

• banning of certain packaging or materials
• imposing levies
• mandating source separation
• implementing disposal bans
• developing local Extended Producer Responsibility measures.

In July 2018, City Council directed staff in Solid Waste Management Services to:

• consult with residents and stakeholder groups on single-use plastics and takeaway packaging items for targeted reduction, and solicit input on policy tools
• develop a work plan aimed to reduce the use of single-use or takeaway packaging or products
• develop a policy to restrict plastic straws in the City of Toronto.

Phase 1

Phase 1 public and stakeholder consultations were held in the fall of 2018.

Objectives

• Identify the top priority single-use or takeaway items to reduce
• Identify the preferred approaches (e.g. voluntary, mandatory or a combination) to reduce items

Activities

More than 20,000 people participated in Phase 1 consultation through the following:

• Online survey
• Public event, webcast and webinar
• Stakeholder meetings
• Direct email communications
• Polling survey of 1,000 Toronto residents to gather statistically significant data

Watch the October 2, 2018 public event webcast online or view the presentation.

Results

As summarized in the Executive Summary Public Consultation Report on Phase 1 Consultation, the majority of participants expressed support for:

• the reduction of single-use and takeaway items
• reusable items instead of disposable items
• the implementation of both mandatory and voluntary approaches to achieve reduction of these items in the city of Toronto.

Results of Phase 1 consultations are available in the Single-Use and Takeaway Items Public Consultation Report.

A summary and the results of the Phase 1 consultations are outlined in a report to the Infrastructure and Environment Committee on May 23, 2019.

The responses to the quantitative questions in the online survey are available through the City of Toronto Open Data Portal.

Phase 2

Phase 2 public and stakeholder consultations were held in the fall of 2019.

Objectives

• Gather feedback on approaches to reduce specific single-use and takeaway items
• Gather feedback on proposed implementation timelines to reduce specific single-use and takeaway items

Activities

More than 41,000 people participated in Phase 2 consultation stakeholder and public consultation activities including:

• Telephone/web town halls
• Online survey
• Public event and webcast
• Stakeholder meetings
• Polling

Watch the September 24, 2019 public event webcast online or view the presentation.

Results

Results of the Phase 2 consultations are summarized in the Single-Use and Takeaway Items Reduction Strategy Phase 2 Public Consultation Report.  

In Phase 2, results from the independent polling found that:

• 75% Toronto residents support by-request/ask first bylaws for single-use eating utensils and straws, and a ban on foam food containers/cups
• A fee for hot drink cups had 64% support
• Two thirds of residents believe that an additional single-use or takeaway item that should be targeted by the City’s Reduction Strategy is black plastic food containers.

Results from the online survey indicate that:

• Participants placed highest priority on a bylaw to address expanded polystyrene (foam) products. 95% of respondents support a ban on expanded polystyrene (foam) food takeaway containers and cups
• 84% support a fee per single-use hot or cold drink cups
• 91% of survey participants support a fee per single-use plastic bag.

2022 Public Consultation

Public consultations were held in February and March 2022.

Objectives

To help inform the City of Toronto’s decisions on a proposed bylaw to reduce single-use and takeaway items, the City sought feedback from stakeholders and the general public on:

1. the proposed timing of implementation of the reduction of items recommended in previous consultations and timing of implementing mandatory measures
2. additional single-use and takeaway items to be addressed through the Reduction Strategy
3. fee amounts associated with some mandatory measures

Activities

More than 12,000 people participated in stakeholder and public consultation activities including:

• Online survey
• Virtual stakeholder meetings
• Virtual public meetings
• Phone survey of businesses
• Polling

View the Narrated Virtual Public Meeting Presentation

View the Non-Narrated Virtual Public Meeting Presentation

Results

Results of the 2022 consultations are in the process of being consolidated and analyzed, and will be summarized in a staff report brought to Council.

Solid Waste Management Services collects personal information under the legal authority of the City of Toronto Act, 2006, SO 2006, Chapter 11, Schedule A, s 136(b) and (c) and the City of Toronto By-law No 1321-2018. All information collected is in accordance with the Municipal Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act.

The information collected to connect participants to the Telephone Town Hall in Phase Two of the Single-Use and Takeaway Items consultations was used to call participants with the telephone number provided and send a link to the presentation by email.

Questions about this collection can be directed to the Manager, Public Consultation, Metro Hall, 19th Floor, 55 John Street, Toronto, Ontario, M5V 3C6 or by telephone at 416-392-2990.