South Australia bans soy sauce plastics

September 02, 2025

South Australia has become the first Australian state to officially ban the use of plastic fish-shaped soy sauce containers, a sushi staple that has long been contributing to plastic waste in drains, streets, and beaches.

These miniature containers—commonly referred to as shoyu-tai—originated in Japan in the 1950s and have since become a global symbol of sushi takeaway culture. While beloved by diners, their small size makes them difficult to recycle, often slipping through sorting systems and ending up as landfill waste or marine litter.

According to South Australia’s Environment Minister Susan Close, the ban is part of a broader push to tackle the long-term environmental damage caused by disposable plastics.

“These items are used for mere seconds but persist in our environment for generations,” Close said. “The fish-shaped soy sauce containers are especially problematic because they are easily dropped, blown into waterways, or flushed into storm drains.”

The ban adds these novelty soy sauce bottles to South Australia’s growing list of prohibited single-use plastic products, which already includes plastic cutlery, straws, takeaway containers, shopping bags, and coffee cups.

The plastic fish ban is part of South Australia’s larger initiative to reduce plastic pollution and promote sustainable alternatives.

Restaurants turning to eco-friendly packaging

As part of the transition, restaurants and takeaway businesses are being urged to replace the plastic soy sauce containers with eco-friendly alternatives—such as compostable sauce containers, refillable dispensers, or squeezable sachets.

Abby Zhang, a Japanese restaurant owner in Adelaide, praised the government’s move, noting that her business had already adopted more sustainable packaging solutions.

“We made the switch to compostable sauce containers some time ago,” Zhang said. “Our customers have been incredibly supportive of the change.”

The global impact of single-use plastics

Each year, the world produces over 400 million tonnes of plastic, with around half of that used for single-use products. Despite efforts to boost recycling, only 9% of plastic waste is successfully recycled, according to global environmental reports.

As awareness of plastic pollution continues to grow, South Australia’s proactive policy may set a precedent for other states and countries to follow in phasing out problematic single-use plastics—no matter how small.