Cups

Council approves transition to federal and provincial single-use regulations

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Federal and provincial single-use regulations began on December 20, 2023. These regulations align with, and extend beyond, our single-use item by-laws.

To avoid overlap and simplify compliance for businesses and non-profits, we will no longer regulate single-use items. The responsibility will now be handled by the federal and provincial governments.

We're removing our single-use item by-laws in 2 phases:
- April 9, 2024: foam containers, plastic straws, single-use utensils and plastic shopping bags
- July 15, 2024: paper and reusable shopping bags
We will notify businesses, residents and other stakeholders in the coming weeks regarding the transition to federal and provincial single-use regulations, and how this change will affect them.

Transitioning to the federal and provincial regulations is a significant achievement for us. We have led the development of comprehensive single-use regulations in Canada. Recognizing we can’t solve the problem of single-use waste and plastic pollution alone, Council and staff have advocated for these federal and provincial regulations.

Provincial regulations

On December 6, 2023, the BC government announced it is phasing in the Single-Use and Plastic Waste Prevention Regulation in stages:
- December 20, 2023: Food service accessories like utensils, straws, stir sticks, cup lids and sleeves, condiments, napkins, wet wipes and garnishes
- July 15, 2024: Shopping bags, food service ware (take-out containers) and oxo-degradable plastics
- July 1, 2028: PVC film wrap
- July 1, 2030: Polystyrene foam meat trays
Learn how the Province is phasing in the BC regulation alongside the federal regulations (593 KB)

Find more details and resources like guidance documents, posters, and a guide to acceptable alternatives

Federal regulations

The Government of Canada enacted the Single-use Plastic Prohibition Regulations to ban the sale and distribution of these single-use plastic items:
- As of December 20, 2023: Shopping bags, cutlery, straws, stir sticks and take-out containers made from specific “problematic” plastics
- As of June 20, 2024: Ring carriers and flexible plastic straws attached to beverage containers
On November 16, 2023, a federal court struck down the legal basis for these federal regulations. The federal government is appealing this ruling. The provincial regulations overlap with the federal regulations (except for ring carriers and plastic straws) and are not affected by the federal court ruling.

For more details and resources like technical guidance and fact sheets, review the Government of Canada’s overview of the regulations.

Questions?
- For help with provincial regulations, email Plastics@gov.bc.ca
- For help with federal regulations, email PlastiquesUU-SUPlastics@ec.gc.ca

Get a single-use item by-law toolkit

Educational toolkits are available for businesses, charities, and not-for-profits to inform staff and customers of the by-law requirements.

On March 28, 2023, Council enacted a by-law that repeals all single-use beverage cup requirements from License By-law No. 4450 (493 KB) (section 15.8) and Ticket Offences By-law No. 9360. (231 KB)

Effective May 1, 2023, businesses are no longer required to:

Charge a minimum $0.25 fee on single-use beverage cups
Report the number of single-use beverage cups when renewing their business licence
Accept customers’ clean reusable cups for drinks ordered in-store

Read the Council decision

What this means for businesses

Food vendors are encouraged to remove the cup fee from their in-store, online, and mobile point of sale (POS) systems, menus and receipts starting May 1.

Businesses are required to charge the cup fee up to May 1, 2023.

We encourage businesses to continue adopting reusable options to reduce single-use cup waste, including:

Accepting reusable cups for all hot and cold drinks (in-store, mobile apps, and drive-thrus) and offering discounts to customers who bring in their own cup,
Serving drinks ordered to stay in reusable cups
Offering returnable cups that customers can borrow for drinks ordered to go

Additional information

Reusable cup-share or cup borrowing programs

What is a reusable cup-share program?

A reusable cup-share program (or cup-borrowing or returnable cup program) lets customers borrow a reusable cup from the store and take their drink to go, then return it to the store or another drop-off location. The cup and lid are cleaned and sanitized before they are used for other customers. Depending on the program, consumers typically pay a small deposit that is refunded when they return the cup or buy a monthly subscription.

Cup-share is a zero-waste solution that makes reusable cups as convenient as single-use cups for drinks to go. It lets people choose reusable if they forget their own cup, or if they don’t want to carry their cup around. It’s like car-share or bike-share, but for cups.

Do any Vancouver businesses have a reusable cup-share program?

Yes. Over 120 business locations in Vancouver, including independent restaurants and local and multi-national chains, now offer cup-share, either with their own branded programs or through a local cup-share service provider (197 KB).

A new cup-borrowing pilot by Return-It and major chains is also underway in Vancouver. Dedicated bins for collecting borrowed reusable cups have been placed in selected commercial and on-street locations in Vancouver. Consumers can return their branded reusable cup in a designated bin to be collected, washed, sanitized and returned to participating stores.

Since the cup by-law came into effect on January 1, 2022, we have encouraged businesses to invest their revenue from the cup fee in reusable alternatives and infrastructure like cup-share programs.
Accepting reusable cups during COVID-19
We encourage businesses to continue to accept customers’ reusable cups for all hot and cold drinks.

COVID-19: Under current BC Centre for Disease Control and Vancouver Coastal Health guidelines, vendors can provide reusable cups and accept customers’ reusable cups during the COVID-19 pandemic.

We have worked with Vancouver Coastal Health to ensure “contactless cup” procedures can be used to serve drinks in customers’ reusable cups.

Tell your staff and customers about it with our contactless cups poster in the single-use item by-law toolkit.

Contactless cup methods

These procedures replace the Contactless Cup Methods published in the Single-Use Item By-law Guide (July 2021).

Used by cafes and restaurants around the world, these methods describe safe procedures for accepting and filling customers’ reusable cups during COVID-19, and are allowed by Vancouver Coastal Health.

Method 1 Steps
1. Customer takes off the lid and places their clean reusable cup on a designated tray or another container provided by staff.
2. Staff moves the tray or container to where the drink will be prepared without making contact with the customer’s cup.
3. Staff pours the prepared drink into the customer’s reusable cup without making contact.
4. Staff brings the tray (or container) with the customer’s cup to a countertop where the customer can then take it away.
5. Staff wash and sanitize trays and containers frequently and when contamination of equipment has occurred. Follow procedures outlined in your food safety and sanitation plan.
Method 2 Steps
1. Staff prepare the drink in a small jug or reusable cup used for pouring.
2. Without touching the customer’s cup, staff pours the prepared drink into the customer’s reusable cup.
3. Staff wash and sanitize the jug or cup used for pouring frequently and when contamination of equipment has occurred. Follow procedures outlined in your food safety and sanitation plan.
Cleaning guidelines for customers' reusable cup

To protect the safety of residents, businesses, and their staff, encourage your customers to follow these cleaning guidelines, approved by Vancouver Coastal Health, for customers’ own reusable cups:
- Most insulated travel mugs are not dishwasher safe.
- Hand wash your travel mug and lid with warm soapy water after each use.
- Rinse under running water. Dry completely.
- Make sure there is no leftover drink residue in your cup or on your lid. Businesses are not required to handle dirty cups or clean yours for you.
- Replace chipped, cracked, or otherwise damaged travel mugs.
Suggested alternatives: What to choose instead
We encourage you to source reusable alternatives or single-use packaging that can be:
- Recycled in the Recycle BC residential recycling program
- Composted in the City Green Bin organics program
Review suggested alternatives:
Myth busting: compostable and degradable plastics
It’s time for some myth busting. You might be surprised to find out what happens to these items after your customers are done with them.

Fact 1

Plastic that is labeled or described as compostable, degradable (example: biodegradable, oxodegradable, photodegradable), bioplastic, or made from plants or other biological materials:
- Is not accepted in the green bin
- Contaminates existing composting and recycling streams
- Is not approved for composting under provincial regulation
- Is not designed to biodegrade if littered in the natural environment
Fact 2

Plastic that is labeled or described as compostable or degradable is also not accepted in Recycle BC’s residential recycling program .

Fact 3

As contaminants, plastics that are labeled or described as compostable, degradable, or made from plants are most likely to be removed from composting and recycling streams and then disposed to landfill or incinerator.

Cups

Council approves transition to federal and provincial single-use regulations

Get a single-use item by-law toolkit

What this means for businesses

Additional information

Reusable cup-share or cup borrowing programs

Accepting reusable cups during COVID-19

Suggested alternatives: What to choose instead

Myth busting: compostable and degradable plastics

Contact information, partner agencies, and website policies