Nov 21 - Sunnyvale Bans Foam Foodware in Restaurants, Stores

Earlier this week, the Sunnyvale City Council formally adopted a ban on expanded polystyrene (EPS) foam foodware used in restaurants and sold in stores. They had initially approved the ordinance unanimously back in October.

The ordinance goes into effect in restaurants on the next Earth Day, April 22, 2014, and expands to retail store shelves on April 22, 2015.

Expanded polystyrene foam litter, regardless of whether it originally came from a restaurant or was purchased in a store by a consumer, never biodegrades and is a visual blight on our environment. Because it is lightweight and prone to break into smaller pieces, EPS is difficult to cleanup. Foam foodware is also difficult to recycle due to food contamination issues. Learn more.

We thank the City of Sunnyvale for its environmental leadership in addressing foam pollution prevention in restaurants as well as in stores. More than 60 cities or counties have banned foam foodware in restaurants, while four other jurisdictions (Santa Cruz City and County, Capitola, and Richmond) have also included a ban on the retail sale of EPS in stores.

See the full list of local foodware ordinances in California.