Aussies have vented their frustration over plans to ban a sushi store staple in one state.
Starting from September 1, South Australians will no longer find fish-shaped soy sauce containers with their takeaway sushi, as part of the state’s initiative to combat unnecessary plastic waste.
Sydneysider Mahmoud Ismail claimed the 20c-sized plastic fish ‘was the last bit of happiness he had left’.
‘I’m still recovering from the fact that any drink now tastes like paper because of those f***ing paper straws,’ he said in a TikTok video.
‘There’s so many things that we need to worry about rather than a little soy sauce fish, this is literally the most convenient thing.
‘What’s this going to change? It’s like spitting on a bushfire.’
Mr Ismail said there were bigger plastic items being thrown into the ocean, and that authorities should ‘get a grip’.
But those supportive of the ban say the soy sauce packages pose unique dangers to native wildlife.
A Sydney man (above) has blasted the South Australian government’s decision to ban soy sauce ‘fish’
The government took this step to eliminate these common condiment packages, recognizing that Australians consume millions of sushi servings yearly, frequently accompanied by the plastic fish.
Seabirds and marine animals confuse the plastic ‘fish’ for a meal and fatally ingest them.
Researchers at New York University have linked human exposure to microplastics to over 350,000 deaths annually.
Microplastics consumed in food and water have contributed to plummeting sperm counts, kidney damage, and an array of birth defects.
Food consumed from plastic containers alone has been linked to a number of heart disease deaths.
But Mr Ismail said the ban would ‘do nothing, bro’.
‘There’s bigger fish to fry,’ he said.
‘Cost of living, inflation… and what about the potholes?
‘Let’s ignore the roads, let’s just ban soy sauce fish, this is going to solve Australia’s problems.’
Mahmoud Ismail expressed his frustration over the upcoming ban, saying, “I’m still recovering from the fact that any drink now tastes like paper because of those f***ing paper straws.”
Social media users bemoaned the ban, saying the fish served ‘the perfect amount of soy sauce’.
‘Can’t they just stop private jets,’ another wrote.
‘Bro, wallah, I just realised it was a fish’ a shocked commenter said.
Australians consume more than 100million servings of sushi annually, according to previous data.
Its prevalence in Australians’ diets even led foreigners to refer to hand-roll style sushi as ‘Australian sushi’.
South Australia’s environmental and health experts decided the soy packages were becoming too common in plastic litter.
Environment Minister and Deputy Premier Susan Close said the plastic products are used for mere seconds before being thrown away.
“Each fish-shaped container is used for mere seconds, yet it persists in the environment for decades or even centuries if littered,” she mentioned earlier this month.
‘Their small size means they’re easily dropped, blown away, or washed into drains, making them a frequent component of beach and street litter.
“In kerbside recycling, these containers are too small for sorting machinery to capture, often ending up in landfills or as stray plastics in the environment.”
