A sushi restaurant favorite is now banned in this country

Australia has made a literal splash in environmental news by banning one of the quirkiest items in sushi packaging: the tiny soy sauce bottles shaped like fish.

These miniature condiments — invented in 1954 by Teruo Watanabe — are often gifted with sushi takeaway meals and are now off the menu statewide as of September 1, 2025, under sweeping new regulations targeting single-use plastics.

This move isn’t mere symbolism; authorities argue the small size and light weight of the fish-shaped bottles make them “easily dropped, blown away, or washed into drains”, ultimately winding up as litter or microplastic pollutants, said South Australia Deputy Premier Susan Close.

Dr Nina Wootton, a marine ecologist at the University of Adelaide, said plastic sushi fish could even be mistaken for food by marine life: “If it hasn’t already been broken down into microplastics yet and it’s floating around in its whole form, then other organisms that eat fish that size could think it is a fish and then eat it,” she said.

The ban isn’t limited to the iconic fish form. It applies broadly to plastic soy sauce dispensers, so long as they are pre-filled, under 30ml, and lack resealable tops.

“They’re a ‘convenience packaging’ item that can be replaced with bulk or refillable condiment solutions or more manageable alternatives, meaning their elimination directly reduces the volume of single-use plastic entering the waste stream,” Close added.

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This ban is not the first move made to stop single-use plastics: previous measures have seen items like plastic cutlery, coffee cups, straws, and balloon sticks all eliminated. Since 2021 alone, local businesses have phased out more than eight million single-use plastic items.

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