Keep your packing peanuts out of New Jersey.

Garden State Gov. Phil Murphy just signed a bill into law banning the sale of polystyrene – or Styrofoam – packing peanuts within two years. The measure will also require more recycled materials to be used in various products, such as rigid plastic containers. The new law could have an impact on promotional products firms that do business in the state, perhaps prompting an uptick in demand for more eco-friendly packing materials.

Proponents say the measure will help keep packing peanuts from becoming litter, reduce plastic use and cut down on microplastic pollution in the ocean and New Jersey waterways, thus protecting aquatic life, according to a report on NJ.com.

“With this new law, more plastic will get recycled, more will get turned into consumer packaging and less will end up in our oceans, waves and beaches,” John Weber, a regional manager for the environmental group Surfrider Foundation, told NorthJersey.com.

After two years, rigid plastic containers must contain 10% post-consumer recycled content and bottles 15%, under the new law. Those percentages would go up by 10% in five years and every three years after that until reaching 50%.

New York also has a statewide ban on polystyrene foam containers and packing peanuts that went into effect at the beginning of the year.

As sustainability and eco-friendly products become more sought-after in the promo industry, increasing attention should be paid to how those items are shipped, packaged and presented – particularly in the age of kitting. Reducing overall packaging or using more sustainable materials helps to reinforce a brand’s commitment to sustainability. “It’s the packaging, not the product … I think of my 20-year-old son and my 30-year-old daughter, and they don’t like a lot of packaging,” said Jo-An Lantz, CEO of Geiger (asi/202900), during a panel discussion with industry leaders at ASI Orlando.

Thank you? Yea. That’s what I will say. 🤦‍♂️. #promotionalproducts pic.twitter.com/mTbOEXfG1B

— Javier (@JavierSolutions) January 19, 2022

The packing peanut ban comes not long after another New Jersey law banning the sale and provision of single-use plastic bags, which is set to go in effect in May of this year. Since 2016, at least 11 states – California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Maine, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Vermont and Washington – have banned single-use plastic bags. Major cities with such bans include Boston, Chicago and Seattle. 

In 1950, the world’s population of 2.5 billion people produced 1.5 million tons of plastic, according to Surfers Against Sewage, a marine conservation charity based in the United Kingdom. In 2016, a global population of more than 7 billion people produced more than 320 million tons of plastic. The 2016 tally is set to double by 2034. Every day, approximately 8 million pieces of plastic pollution find their way into oceans, according to Surfers Against Sewage.

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