S. Korea makes efforts to reduce plastic waste through detergent refill and banning excessive packaging

친환경 새바람...빈 통 들고 세탁세제 리필, 완제품 재포장 금지South Koreans can now get a refill for their laundry detergent.Refill machines are popping up in supermarkets in an attempt to reduce plastic waste.The government is also banning the use of extra plastic packaging from next year.Kim Sung-min reports. Those looking to reduce the amount of plastic they throw out can now get laundry detergent refills straight from the supermarket.The Ministry of Environment has collaborated with a detergent company to install machines,... that refill detergent into an already used empty bottle.People can bring their empty bottle, refill the detergent and put a sticker on the bottle to pay for it."People do not have to throw out the empty bottle but just bring it back to get a refill."For a 3 liter refill, people can get a discount of up to 39 percent.Buying a new empty bottle for the first time will cost around 40 cents."This demonstration project aims to enhance the safety of chemical products used in daily life and reduce the amount of plastic being used."The Environment Ministry expects that the system will reduce the use of plastics by 8-thousand-700 kilograms a year.In addition to this, extra plastic packaging, commonly used for buy-one-get-one-free products, will be banned from next January.The products can still be taped together or packaged using paper.And the rule does not apply to fresh food like fish and vegetables.Kim Sung-min, Arirang News