More Consumers Prioritize Eco-Friendliness and Sustainability
Various Solutions Including 100% Paper Packaging
Earn Points for Returning Refrigerated Bags
Layers of stacked Styrofoam boxes, cloth bags used as packaging materials, plastic bubble wrap and nets used as cushioning materials...
Yoonju Park, a worker in her 30s, sighs every time she opens holiday gift sets, seeing the piles of trash accumulating at home. She especially worries about how to dispose of items with tape attached or coated surfaces.
Seoul City is conducting a joint inspection of excessive packaging at Emart Yeoksam Branch ahead of the Lunar New Year holiday. Photo by Seoul City
The saying "A good-looking rice cake tastes better" is now outdated. Recently, as more people emphasize eco-friendly consumption and sustainability, negative perceptions of excessive packaging are growing day by day. The distribution industry is also taking steps to "reduce waste" ahead of the Lunar New Year gift set launches. In the past, companies tried to attract consumers with luxurious packaging, but recently they have been considering how to reduce plastic and Styrofoam as much as possible to appeal to consumers who prioritize sustainability.
According to the distribution industry on the 25th, Daesang Cheongjeongwon launched an "All Paper Package" that uses no plastic in its packaging materials. This gift set uses 100% paper packaging, and Daesang is the first in the industry to use pulp press technology to create the all-paper package.
It has strength and durability comparable to plastic, reducing the possibility of damage during transportation. The paper is made from FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) certified fabric, and eco-friendly materials such as soy ink and water-based coating methods are applied. Daesang also prepared the "Reusable Eco Bag Package" introduced last Chuseok. This product uses a reusable canvas bag as the packaging bag, combining practicality and usability, and includes four types: Premium Oil Edition N, Premium Oil Edition R, Cheongjeongwon Seasoning Complex 1, and Cheongjeongwon Seasoning Complex 2.
Dongwon F&B introduced a "Recycling Plastic Gift Set" made by recycling sterilized packs and waste plastic. The recycled plastic uses 'Cr-PP (Chemical Recycled PP),' a recycled raw material extracted by pyrolyzing discarded waste plastic. Using recycled materials reduces plastic production, making it eco-friendly. In addition, they also sell "Less Plastic" and "All Paper Package" gift sets that reduce plastic usage.
Sajo Daerim applied the concepts of "recycling" and "reuse" to 84 types of Lunar New Year gift sets and significantly reduced unnecessary auxiliary materials and disposable packaging. For example, by minimizing can ham lids, nonwoven fabric, and trays, they achieved a reduction of about 90 tons of plastic.
Representative products include the "ECO Premium Oil Set" and "ECO Special Premium Oil Set." The ECO series, first introduced last Chuseok, uses a "pulp mold case" jointly designed and patented by Sajo Daerim and Murim P&P, a comprehensive pulp, paper, and new materials company. The pulp mold is a material that has obtained international sustainability certifications and received the highest grade of biodegradability certification from TUV Austria, Europe's most prestigious eco-certification body.
In the case of Lotte Department Store, customers who return Lotte Department Store exclusive refrigerated bags for meat, dried persimmons, and fresh fish received as Lunar New Year gifts will earn 3,000 L.Points per bag. Each person can return and earn points for up to five bags. The collected refrigerated bags will be recycled by Lotte Department Store and transformed into new goods.
Lotte Department Store launched the refrigerated bag collection program for the first time in the industry starting from Chuseok 2022. The number of collected refrigerated bags has increased by more than 10% every holiday, and a total of 66,000 bags have been returned over five holidays up to last Chuseok. Lotte Department Store recycles the collected bags to make camping chairs, pouches, aprons, and sells them, using the proceeds to support family care youth projects.
Meanwhile, local governments are conducting intensive inspections of department stores and large discount stores ahead of the holidays. In Seoul, they are checking confectionery, liquor, cosmetics, detergents, miscellaneous goods, quasi-drugs, clothing, electronics, and comprehensive products for compliance with packaging space ratio limits (10% to 35% by item) and packaging frequency limits (within 1 to 2 layers by item). Products suspected of excessive packaging are sent to specialized institutions for inspection, and if they exceed the standards, a fine of 1 million KRW is imposed.
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