Loved for its convenience but polluting Australian beaches, the soy sauce fish will soon be banned in South Australia, raising questions about its future in other states.
A staple in Aussie culture, the soy sauce fish is to be included in South Australia’s Single-use and Other Plastic Products (Waste Avoidance) Act. South Australia has led the charge in sustainability in Australia. It banned plastic bags in 2009, with NSW being the last to implement its ban in June 2022.
Sophia Brown, an ecology major at UOW, explained the impacts the fish could have on the environment.
“The sauce is good and the packaging recognisable, but it has a large and detrimental impact on many terrestrial and marine environments alike,” Sophia Brown said.
Secretary of UOW’s Human Geography and Sustainability Society (HUGS), James Vallance, said the plastic sauce packaging adds to the microplastic pollution in the environment.
“Although the soy sauce fish packets are rather small individually, they’re mass produced and many of them end up in storm water runoffs, on the ground, or in the ocean, these packets further add to the broader problem of microplastic pollution within the environment,” James Vallance said.
Sushi is relatively healthy and an affordable option for many. University students like Avril Siufi feel the sauce is an important part of Australian tradition.
‘The soy sauce fish kind of holds a social and cultural significance in Australia, I mean, it’s pretty iconic for its cute and convenient packaging.’ Avril Siufi said.
The ban raises the question of what would replace the fish packaging. Avril disagrees with the notion of NSW implementing the ban.
“I don’t really see how this benefits the environment and Australians, as while it may seem productive to ban the soy sauce fish, what would be their alternative?” Avril Siufi said.
Conversations surrounding sustainability and the banning of soft plastics resurfaced after Australia joined with 96 other nations at the United Nations Ocean Conference in France in June. Committing to a powerful global response to end plastic pollution.
“In our Pacific region, including on Australia’s coastline and offshore territories, we see the impacts of globally mismanaged plastics which are killing marine life and washing up on shore,” Minister for the Environment and Water Murray Watt said.
The World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) Australia announced that an estimated 100,000 marine mammals are killed every year due to plastic pollution.
“We believe that the South Australian state government’s ban on the soy sauce fish shows a proactive approach to bettering the protection and management of local ecosystems and mitigating pollution from single-use plastics,” James Vallance said.
As South Australia leads the way for sustainability, NSW questions what we can do in the fight against climate change.