The NSW Government has abandoned mandatory reusable cup schemes and a requirement for cafés to offer mugs or glasses to dine-in customers, prompting criticism from three environment groups just days after Parliament passed the reforms.
The changes, announced on 28 October, remove two measures intended to expand reuse under NSW Plastics Plan 2.0. Requirements for businesses to accept customers’ clean reusable cups and for single-use takeaway coffee cups to be recyclable remain.
The government’s 22 October announcement had said cafés would need to offer mugs or glasses for dine-in customers from 2028. The broader plan also provided for large foodservice businesses to offer reusable takeaway cups through reuse systems from 2030, with exemptions planned for small businesses.
Government cites business concerns
In a statement published on 28 October, NSW environment minister Penny Sharpe said the government had heard concerns from small businesses and would not require cafés to buy additional cups or change their operations.
“Cafes will not be required to offer a mug or glass to dine-in customers,” Sharpe said.
She also confirmed that “there will be no mandatory reusable cup schemes”, extending the change beyond the small-business exemptions previously planned.
In a separate statement of regulatory intent, also dated 28 October, the NSW EPA said neither small nor large businesses would be required to provide reusable cups from 2030.
The regulator said it would not enforce the new section 34C of the Plastic Reduction and Circular Economy Act 2021, which sets out the obligation to offer cups through reuse schemes.
The EPA acknowledged that successful reuse systems depended on supporting infrastructure, operational capability and consumer participation. It said its approach would focus on business support and voluntary participation.
Environment groups condemn retreat
Boomerang Alliance, the Australian Marine Conservation Society (AMCS) and Clean Up Australia criticised the decision in a joint release issued on 28 October.
Boomerang Alliance director Jeff Angel described reuse as “one of the best ways to reduce plastic in the environment” and said the organisation would launch a new packaging campaign focused on government and business inaction and concerns about microplastics and associated chemicals.
AMCS plastics campaigns manager Cip Hamilton said the reversal weakened efforts to reduce disposable cup waste at its source.
“Making cups recyclable won’t stop them from ending up in our ocean and harming marine life and habitats,” Hamilton said.
Hamilton said the society’s research showed reuse worked best when convenient for customers and shared across businesses.
“Businesses have already proved reuse works, but they need the government to back them, not backflip on them.”
Clean Up Australia chair Pip Kiernan said takeaway coffee cups were the fourth most littered item in NSW.
“The easiest way to prevent coffee cup litter and waste is by using a reusable cup,” Kiernan said.
The remaining cup reforms retain the requirement to accept clean customer-provided reusable cups from January 2028 and the planned recyclability requirement for single-use takeaway coffee cups from 2028
