Purpose: To eliminate the use of Styrofoam and plastic food ware used by restaurants and other food providers within Richmond in order to advance the use of recyclable and compostable materials.

On August 5, 2010, Richmond’s Food Ware Ordinance became effective. Under this legislation, approved by City Council, food providers must only use paper, compostable, or aluminum materials for boxes, cups, plates, bowls, trays, and all other cutlery.

Affecting environmental health, Styrofoam and plastic food ware pose two primary threats to the community:

1. With limited recycling options, these materials do not completely degrade – in turn increasing the difficulty of clean up and physical litter in waterways and the surrounding marine environment.

2. The chemicals used to create Styrofoam have been identified as a neurotoxin, with the ability to travel from containers into its food/drink contents.

Restaurants, mobile vendors, caterers, etc. must apply the ordinance for present and future service, explicitly eliminating the use of plastic containers and most other plastic food ware. The consequence for violation is first a mailed warning, followed by the issuance of a misdemeanor subject to Richmond’s general citation process.

The ordinance precedes a residential food waste collection program that will collect compostable food ware for correct disposal and ultimate reuse.

Public Outreach & Education:

To ensure complete comprehension and successful implementation, the City held community meetings for one year before the ordinance was put into effect, informing businesses on the details of the ordinance. Additionally, informational material was mailed to related businesses, and over 25% of Richmond food providers were personally provided education and assistance by City staff.

For similar legislation, a compliance exemption is allowed for reasons directly associated with economic adjustment. Instead of providing an exemption for this purpose, the City extended the effective date of the ordinance in order to allow more time for food providers to financially adjust.