WASHINGTON – Today, Senator Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) and Representative Lloyd Doggett (D-TX-37) reintroduced legislation targeting single-use plastic foam products across the United States called the Farewell to Foam Act. This bill would phase out the use of plastic foam foodware, packing peanuts, and single-use foam coolers by 2028. Ocean Conservancy has long advocated for the elimination of plastic foam foodware and other single-use items due to their prevalence in and impact on the environment, including Ocean Conservancy’s “What the Foam?!” campaign that started in 2023.

“Plastic foam has a devastating impact on our ocean: plastic foam foodware items are among the most common single-use plastics found on beaches and waterways, where they easily break down into tiny pieces and can be ingested by marine life,” said Dr. Anja Brandon, Ocean Conservancy’s Director of Plastics Policy. “In recent years, we’ve seen a wave of state and local municipalities take action and phase out plastic foam foodware, but piecemeal efforts are not enough to address the flood of single-use plastics polluting our environment. Enough is enough, and we’re thrilled to see Congress say farewell to foam.”

“Plastic foam materials from food containers to packing peanuts are usually used once and thrown away, but that’s just the beginning of their journey – too often these toxic materials end up choking our waterways, contaminating our food supply, and building up in our bodies. Phasing out foam and encouraging the use of smarter packaging will help protect the health of our communities and our environment as well as the economic wellbeing of all those whose livelihoods depend on our waterways,” said Sen. Van Hollen.

“Plastic foam is a permanent polluter,” said Rep. Doggett. “As trash clutters our waterways, roadsides, and greenspaces, plastic foam doesn’t ever fully disintegrate. Instead, it ever so slowly degrades into microplastics that pollute our bodies and our planet. This legislation, informed by successful state and local plastic foam bans, seeks a cleaner, more sustainable future for our entire country by saying farewell to foam.”

Since 2014, 11 states and Washington D.C. have passed similar bans, and International Coastal Cleanup® data shows their impact: in Maryland, the first state to pass a ban, the amount of plastic foam foodware items collected since this law went into effect declined by 65% in the two years following the ban.  Polling conducted by Ocean Conservancy in 2023 found strong support for national action, with over 70% of Americans regardless of political party, supporting a national ban on plastic foam foodware.

A survey conducted by Ocean Conservancy revealed that half of Americans have placed plastic foam in their recycling bins within the two weeks prior and 35% consistently attempt to recycle foam. However, plastic foam is not accepted in curbside recycling programs. Ocean Conservancy estimates that this amounts to roughly 2.5 billion pieces of foam foodware contaminating recycling systems across the United States every year.

Plastic foam foodware items also rank among the top 10 most frequently found single-use plastic items in the nearly 40-year history of Ocean Conservancy’s International Coastal Cleanup (ICC). Since 1986, volunteers have collected over 9.4 million plastic foam cups, plates, and takeout containers worldwide. In the U.S. alone, more than 2.7 million foam cups, plates and takeout containers have been removed from beaches and waterways since the start of the ICC. Additionally, over 5.7 million tiny foam pieces have been recovered across U.S. coastlines, highlighting the prevalence of this environmental pollution.  

Senator Van Hollen and Rep. Doggett are joined by 84 of their Senate and House colleagues in sponsoring this critical piece of legislation.

Ocean Conservancy’s What the Foam?! report can be found HERE.

A plastic foam media kit with a report, photos and b-roll can be found HERE.

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