Mill Valley advances reusable foodware ordinance

Mill Valley is poised to require food service businesses to have reusable foodware for dine-in operations and compostable foodware for takeout orders.

The City Council unanimously approved a first reading of the ordinance at its meeting on April 3. The city expects to adopt the ordinance on April 17.

The ordinance will replace a previous version that bans non-reusable packaging, including polystyrene foam. The new regulation will be broader, requiring foodware to be reusable or compostable and prohibiting plastic foodware.

The ordinance will cover restaurants, grocery stores and delis, bakeries, carryout services, farmers markets, food trucks and any other business that requires a health permit.

Foodware is defined as containers, bowls, plates, food trays, cups, lids, boxes and other items that are used for prepared foods.

Under the ordinance, reusables are preferred, natural-fiber compostable foodware is compliant, and polystyrene foam and single-use plastics, including bioplastics, are prohibited. The ordinance only allows fiber-based compostable foodware because the compost facility at the Redwood Landfill and Recycling Center will not accept bioplastics.

Takeout foodware accessories must be natural-fiber compostable. The ordinance provides that plastic straws can only be provided on request. Other accessories include forks, spoons, knives, chopsticks, napkins, cup sleeves, food wrappers, beverage trays, condiment containers, straws, stirrers, splash sticks, cocktail sticks, toothpicks, tray-liners and plate-liners.

Reusable foodware must be used in restaurants. Food vendors must charge 25 cents for non-reusable cups.

Enforcement includes a notice of non-compliance and an opportunity to correct before a penalty is imposed. There are temporary exemptions for some items related to a product’s commercial availability, including plastic-lined soup cups.

The county adopted its reusable foodware ordinance on May 10. Dana Armanino, a principal planner for the county’s sustainability team, said the ordinance was developed to be accessible for businesses throughout the county.

“We’re really focused on a proactive education of our businesses and then a transition to less waste,” Armanino said.

Mill Valley City Manager Todd Cusimano said, “We are all partners in this and we are all trying to move forward and follow the county’s lead.”

Residents who spoke on the issue gave almost unanimous support.

Barbara Bogard of Mill Valley, a former chair of environmental advocacy group Plastic Free Marin, said the effort is a part of a long history of responsible foodware use in the county.

She called the effort “an action you can take right now that will have an impact, not only for now, but for thousands of years to come.”

Jim Welte, executive director of the Mill Valley Chamber of Commerce, called for sustained outreach to businesses about the program.

“Many of them remain confused about the granular details about product availability and the road ahead,” he said.

Councilmember Urban Carmel said the work would serve as a model for the rest of the nation.

“You have to appreciate where we are when we are in Marin County, when we are in California,” he said. “The rest of the country is doing virtually zero of this stuff.”

Councilmember Max Perrey said he is confident that local businesses are ready to embrace the changes.

“I think there’s going to be some things to solve, but we have a number of months to do it and look forward to engaging in that work,” he said.