From now on, bottled water and beverage companies producing more than 5,000 tons of PET products annually must use 10% recycled plastic materials.
On the 20th, the Ministry of Environment announced that it will publicly notify for 40 days starting the next day the amendment to the subordinate regulations of the "Act on the Promotion of Saving and Recycling of Resources," which includes this content. According to the amendment, the obligation to use recycled plastic materials will shift from plastic producers to product manufacturers. While companies producing plastic raw materials have borne the regulatory burden, going forward, companies producing PET products such as "bottled water production" or "non-alcoholic beverage manufacturing" will be responsible. The regulation, which previously applied only to those producing more than 10,000 tons annually, has been strengthened to apply to those producing more than 5,000 tons.
The mandatory usage ratio of recycled materials has also been increased. Under the current law, recycled materials must be used up to 3% of the total, but this will be raised to 10%. Furthermore, the usage obligation ratio will be gradually increased to 30% by 2030, and the scope of obligated users will be expanded to final product manufacturers producing more than 1,000 tons annually. The 10% recycled material usage ratio will apply from next year's shipment volume, which is expected to require about 20,000 tons of waste PET. The Ministry of Environment states that the current supply volume is around 50,000 tons, so there is no immediate problem with enforcement.
The Ministry of Environment plans to identify items other than PET bottles where recycled materials can be used, such as household appliances, automotive interior materials, and cosmetic containers, and to set usage targets to expand the use of recycled plastic materials.
Lee Jeong-mi, Director of the Resource Recycling Division at the Ministry of Environment, said, "Since the obligation was imposed on plastic raw material producers, product manufacturers did not use recycled plastic materials, so system improvement was necessary. We expect that by imposing usage obligations on both raw material producers and final product manufacturers, the recycling market will be further revitalized."
Meanwhile, the international community is moving toward mandating the use of recycled materials to reduce plastic usage. The European Union (EU) has mandated that the proportion of recycled materials used in manufacturing food-grade PET bottles be increased to 25% by this year. The mandatory ratio is planned to increase to 30% by 2030. California in the United States requires that plastic packaging contain 25% recycled materials by 2025 and 50% by 2030.
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