Restaurants Canada is applauding Vancouver city council’s decision to repeal the single-use plastic cup charge and said it believes the Canadian government’s plan to ban single-use plastics is enough for restaurants. .“The cup fee has not resulted in a reduction of demand, and our members never want to pass along new fees to their value-conscious guests, especially at a time when inflation is already raising the costs of just about everything,” said Restaurants Canada Vice-President of Western Canada Mark von Schellwitz in a Thursday press release. .“Our members expressed not only have they been met with pushback from customers to the mandatory cup fee, but it has also added even more costs and red tape to restaurants still struggling to recover from the pandemic.” .Vancouver city council decided Wednesday it would be scrapping its single-use cup fee..A strong majority voted for the motion to remove the 25-cent fee, which came into effect in 2022. .Vancouver Coun. Rebecca Bligh put forward the motion to remove the fee, saying it has done little to change consumer habits..The release went on to say Restaurants Canada argued the fee had been ineffective in its initial goal of reducing the number of single-use cups being used. It said it's made buying warm beverages less affordable and disproportionately hurt small businesses and low-income households more than any other demographic. .Von Schellwitz has worked since the fee was implemented in 2022 to advocate for local restaurants and communicate the challenges this fee presents. .The release said Canada’s food service sector has seen input costs increase by 30% over the past year, while menu inflation has gone up by 7.8%. .City of Vancouver staff are obliged to draft a bylaw amendment by June 1 for the fee to be formally repealed. Restaurants Canada will continue to work with Vancouver city council to ensure all future bylaws take the state of the food service sector into consideration. .The Canadian government said in June it was moving forward with a plan to restrict single-use plastic products. .READ MORE: Canadian government to ban single-use plastics.“By the end of the year, you won’t be able to manufacture or import these harmful plastics,” said Environment and Climate Change Minister Steven Guilbeault. .“After that, businesses will begin offering the sustainable solutions Canadians want, whether that’s paper straws or reusable bags.”
