The beginning of the end for Plastic Sauce Sachets?

The ban would follow on from plastic straws, stirrers and cotton buds, which became illegal in the majority of circumstances in 2020.

The aim of these measures is to potentially bring in a nationwide change similarly to the measures that were successfully bought in to reduce plastic bag wastage. Supermarkets began charging for carrier bags in 2015, a reduction of 95% plastic bags has been measured deeming the government intervention a success, the government aims to emulate this success with single use condiment carriers.

Condiment sachets of ketchup, mayonnaise, milk and vinegar products could soon on the way out nationwide to implement a more environmentally friendly way of living. These plans have been put together by the Department for Environment, Farming and Rural Affairs to address an issue which has massive ramifications.

The government initiated an investigation and report in November on how to tackle pollution from commonly littered single-use plastic items such as sachets, wet wipes and coffee cups. When weighing up the options to make systematic changes, a potential ban was considered.

The report concluded that single-use sauce sachets could "cause considerable harm to the marine and terrestrial environment when disposed of incorrectly". Because of their small size and heavy contamination with food, they are hard to segregate and clean, making them unlikely to be recycled. A government source said yesterday that a ban on plastic sachets was being considered because "alternatives do exist and sachets are very problematic".