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France has become the first country to ban all plastic cups, plates and cutlery in a law that will take full effect in 2020.

The measure was passed last month, but businesses have until 2020 to fully comply, according to the Associated Press.

All disposable dishes in France will instead have to be made from biologically sourced materials and the products must be able to be composted.

BioPak founder and director Richard Fine told PKN Packaging News the news was "fantastic".

"The rest of the world should start adopting the same measures," he said.

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"There's no reason we have to use plastic single-use items.

"Their environmental cost is mounting up and now that we have more bioplastics players coming on board consumers can make choices that will not pollute the environment."

Biopak offsets all the carbon emissions associated with the production, transport and disposal of its sustainable, plant-based packaging.

France banned plastic bags in July, a move other countries have also made, but France is the first to extend these types of bans to plastic cutlery and dishes.

France has been a leader on climate change and hosted the Paris Climate Change Conference in 2015.

The country's newest ban has attracted criticism from packaging industry lobbyists, who say that the ban violates European Union rules on the free movement of goods, the AP says.

Food & Drink Business

More than 80 distillers from across New South Wales and the ACT will meet in Sydney on 25 November for the inaugural NSW & ACT Distillers Conference, where the industry will formally launch Spirits NSW.

The federal government has announced the inaugural members of the National Food Council, the first step in developing its national food security strategy, Feeding Australia. The council includes representatives from across the food system and will play an advisory role to the Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry minister.

Queensland foodservice wholesaler Prime Cut Meats has been acquired by Andrews Meat Industries (AMI), the family-managed business that forms part of JBS Australia. The move expands AMI’s protein supply capabilities in Queensland and northern New South Wales.