Single-use disposable plastic drinking cups will be eliminated from Sydney Showground venue run outlets and bars from this month.

Sydney Showground has entered into a multi-year agreement with WISE – It’s In Your Hands, for the supply of re-usable cups to events conducted at the venue.

WISE – It’s In Your Hands is a wholly-owned Australian company that supplies re-usable cups to stadiam, events and festivals.

RAS CEO, Brock Gilmour, said the WISE re-usable cup is a sensible and practical answer to eliminate single-use cups going to landfill.

“Additionally, re-usable cups will significantly reduce daily post-event cleaning costs and assist with improved waste management,” said Gilmour.

WISE CEO and co-founder, Craig Lovett, said the company’s market research and trials over the past two years have proven the Australian venue and event industry and their customers are  looking for an alternative to disposable single-use plastics.

“Over five million disposable plastic cups are going to landfill in Australia each month. They are contaminating our land and are ending up in waterways, rivers and beaches, The WISE solution empowers patrons and venue management to actively participate in the War-On-Waste and make a significant environmental change. This is why we say the solution is ‘In Your Hands’”.

Lovett said market research conducted in Sydney and Melbourne last year revealed respondents were overwhelmingly supportive of replacing single-use plastic cups at stadiums and events.

“Almost 96 per cent of respondents wanted to see single-use cups being eliminated, and they were strongly in favour of donating their $1 returnable deposit to charity,” said Lovett.

WISE cups were used at the HSBC Sydney 7s tournament at Sydney Showground last month.

“We received tremendous feedback from rugby fans and from the Australian Rugby Union and we anticipate Showground attendees will fully embrace our re-usable cups.”

Earlier this month Hobart City Council voted in favour of a by-law designed to restrict the use of single-use plastic takeaway packaging. The by-law encompasses the packaging in which takeaway food is supplied to consumers at the point of sale, including plastic cutlery; sauce sachets; plastic takeaway hot food containers and lids; plastic straws; plastic lined noodle boxes; plastic lined coffee cups; plastic lids on takeaway cups and plastic sandwich wedges.

The announcement followed Qantas Group’s plans to become world’s first airline to reuse, recycle and compost three-quarters of its general waste by the end of 2021, and the ACT government’s proposal to ban single-use plastics.

Originally published on InClean

Sunday March 17 2019