Retail and wholesale

Single-use plastic items ban

Queensland's ban on the supply of single-use plastic items started on 1 September 2021.

The single-use plastic items ban is part of Queensland's plan to tackle plastic pollution and follows strong support from the community, retailers and industry organisations.

Banned items

Banned single-use items are:

single-use plastic straws
plastic stirrers and swizzle sticks
plastic plates
unenclosed plastic bowls
plastic forks, spoons, knives, splayds, chopsticks, and food picks
expanded polystyrene (EPS) takeaway food containers
expanded polystyrene (EPS) cups.

Expanding the ban

Community, industry and business consultation has shown strong support to expand the ban of single-use plastics. As a result, the following single-use plastic items will be banned from 1 September 2023:

cotton buds with plastic stems
expanded polystyrene loose packaging
plastic microbeads in rinseable personal care and cleaning products
heavyweight plastic shopping bags
mass release of lighter than air balloons.

A proposed 5–year roadmap has been prepared to show how the Queensland Government plans to continue to work with suppliers, manufacturers and businesses on the inclusion of additional single-use plastic items in the ban, including single-use takeaway coffee cups and lids.

This will provide industry and businesses with an opportunity to provide feedback regarding supply chain challenges, sourcing suitable alternatives and timeframes, and prepare for future actions.

Visit the single-use plastic items ban website for details on consultation opportunities for extending the ban.

Preparing your business

If you own or operate a business that uses banned items (e.g. restaurants, cafes, takeaway food shops, party suppliers, supermarkets), you will not be able to provide these to your customers after the ban commences.

To find out what your options are, follow the 3 steps to prepare your business on the Queensland single-use plastic items ban website.

If you are a supplier, distributor or wholesaler of banned items, you may continue to supply to a business if you have a reasonable belief they are an exempt business.

Read more about how the ban is being enforced.

Exempt businesses

The following exempt businesses can continue to use banned items:

clinics or facilities that provide care to persons with disability or healthcare needs
hospitals
dental clinics
medical clinics
pharmacies
aged care facilities
medical suppliers.

What your business can do now

As a business owner/operator, firstly identify if you still need to provide banned items to your customers, and if so, find out what items you can replace them with. If you have excess stock, you may also wish to contact your supplier to find out about their returns policy.

The Queensland Government, in partnership with the National Retail Association (NRA), is working with retailers and suppliers to ensure they understand and comply with the single-use plastic items ban, including options to manage excess stock.

Visit the Queensland single-use plastic items ban website for more information or phone the hotline on 1800 844 946.

For more information about the ban, contact the following Single-use Plastic Items Ban Stakeholder Advisory Group (SAG) organisations: