On the 1st, when restrictions on the use of disposable items in stores under the Resource Recycling Act resumed, an employee was organizing mugs at a franchise coffee shop in Seoul. The temporary allowance for the use of disposable items in food and beverage service establishments such as cafes, which was permitted due to COVID-19 and other reasons, will be restricted again starting from this day. Photo by Kim Hyun-min kimhyun81@
[Asia Economy Reporter Moon Hyewon]“I’ll just sit for 5 minutes and leave right away,” “Customer, you cannot use plastic cups inside the store. We have to pay a fine.”
On the morning of the 3rd, a small dispute occurred between an employee and a customer at a coffee shop in Gangnam-gu, Seoul. When a customer who ordered a takeout drink received it in a plastic cup and tried to sit at a table, an employee hurriedly approached and stopped them. In the end, the customer reluctantly left the store with a disappointed “It’s just for a moment.”
Since the ban on single-use items in food service establishments such as cafes and restaurants was reinstated on the 1st, such disputes have frequently occurred in various places during the first weekend.
At a coffee franchise store where customers must use a kiosk to order, there was a case where a customer ordered without any separate notice and refused to accept the drink in a mug when receiving it. Park (56), who visited the store that day, said, “I ordered a drink thinking I would just sit briefly while waiting for my husband who was running errands nearby and then leave, but I was surprised when it came in a mug. As soon as I took a sip, my husband called saying I had to leave now, and it was troublesome and took quite some time to ask the staff to transfer the drink back into a takeout plastic cup. It would have been better if I could have told the staff directly when ordering, but there was no notice on the kiosk device, so it was really frustrating.”
The situation was somewhat better at a large coffee franchise where a sign stating “Use of single-use items (plastic cups, spoons, forks) inside the store is prohibited from April 1” was placed on the counter. Customers generally accepted the ban on single-use items inside the store. However, some customers sensitive to COVID-19 avoided using reusable glass cups, so employees showed them inside the dish rack to confirm that the cups were clean and sterilized.
The ban on single-use cups inside stores was first implemented in August 2018 to reduce household waste. In 2020, due to the spread of COVID-19, local governments temporarily allowed the use of single-use items inside stores, but as the use of single-use items surged, the ban was reinstated on the 1st of this month. In 2020, the amount of waste plastic increased by 19% compared to the previous year, and during the same period, the amount of expanded polystyrene and vinyl increased by 14% and 9%, respectively.
The Ministry of Environment plans to focus on guidance and education rather than enforcement for the time being, considering the economic difficulties of small business owners due to the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic. They intend to resume imposing fines once the COVID-19 alert level decreases.
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