A new law prohibiting food service businesses from providing single-use utensils and condiment packets – unless specifically requested by customers – will take effect on Aug. 1.
The “Skip the Stuff” law was signed in the final hours of the Murphy administration on Jan. 20. The sponsor of Senate Bill 3915, Sen. Bob Smith (D-17), has said the law is intended to cut down on millions of tons of plastic waste by stopping the practice of routinely giving people single-use utensils and condiments they did not ask for.
All K-12 schools, licensed health care facilities, and county jails and state prisons are exempt from the requirements of this law. Food service businesses located in food courts are exempt only until Aug. 1, 2028.
Casual food establishments, such as cafes, food trucks, fast-food restaurants and cafeterias, will still be allowed to provide single-use utensils and condiments if the customer requests them, or through self-serve condiment stations. Full-service restaurants must only provide washable utensils to customers who eat on their premises.
Food ordering apps are permitted to give customers the option to request single-use utensils and condiments. However, the app must be set to “no utensils or condiments” by default. Take-out customers using online ordering at a full-service restaurant may request single-use utensils.
The law allows businesses to provide bundled packages that contain more than one type of utensil or condiment only until Aug. 1, 2027. Food service businesses are still permitted to use single-use portion cups when servicing sauces, dressings, or similar condiment items.
Businesses will receive a warning for the first violation of the law but face a civil penalty of $100 for the second offense, and $250 for the third and each subsequent offense. However, if it has been a year or more since the business’s last offense, the violation will be treated as a second offense, not a third or subsequent offense.
Any money collected from penalties will be deposited into the "Clean Communities Program Fund" for use in financing litter pickup, removal, education, and enforcement programs at the State and local levels. A municipality or entity certified to enforce the law would be permitted to retain 30% of any penalty it collects.
The law also requires the Department of Environmental Protection to develop a 180-day education campaign about the financial and environmental benefits of reducing single-use utensils and condiments and to encourage responsible use by reminding individuals not to take more items than needed from a self-serve condiment station or utensil dispenser.
For more information about how this law may affect your business, visit DEP's Get Past Plastic website at https://dep.nj.gov/get-past-plastic/.
