Single-Use Items in New York, NY (2026)
3 verified single-use items rules for New York, New York, sourced directly from the municipal code and official government pages.
Verified from official government sources
Plastic Straw Rules
New York City food service establishments cannot hand out single-use plastic beverage straws unless a customer asks for one. Administrative Code § 16-401(c)(1) requires restaurants to keep straws on request, stock enough supply to meet demand, and post a required sign at every self-serve station.
NYC Plastic Straws: Available Upon Request
Some RestrictionsNew York City Administrative Code § 16-401(c)(1)
No food service establishment in the city shall provide to any person a single-use plastic beverage straw that is not compostable except upon request. Nothing in this chapter shall preclude food service establishments from providing compostable beverage straws that are not made from plastic. ... All food service establishments that have one or more self-serve stations shall display a sign at ea...
Utensils-On-Request
New York City bars food service establishments and third-party delivery services from including single-use eating utensils, condiment packets, napkins, or extra containers with takeout and delivery orders unless the customer specifically requests them. The Department of Sanitation enforces the rule citywide.
NYC 'Skip the Stuff': Utensils Only on Request
Significant RestrictionsN.Y.C. Admin. Code § 16-402(a)
No food service establishment shall provide eating utensils, condiment packets, napkins, or extra eating containers to a take-away customer, whether directly to such customer or through a third-party courier service or third-party food delivery service, unless such customer requests eating utensils, condiment packets, napkins, or extra eating containers.
Takeout Containers
New York City prohibits food service establishments, mobile food commissaries, and stores from possessing, selling, or offering single-use expanded polystyrene foam containers, cups, plates, and trays, plus foam loose-fill packing peanuts. DSNY enforces the ban, in effect since January 1, 2019.
NYC Foam Takeout Container Ban
Heavy RestrictionsN.Y.C. Admin. Code § 16-329(c)–(d)
c. If expanded polystyrene single service articles are not designated as a recyclable material pursuant to subdivision b of this section, then, on and after July first, two thousand fifteen, no food service establishment, mobile food commissary, or store shall possess, sell, or offer for use single service articles that consist of expanded polystyrene... d. ...no manufacturer or store shall sel...