How do you pursue a sustainable lifestyle? One of the most interesting trends in Korea lately has been the public's growing environmental conscience.

Many companies in Korea have been noticing this trend and making more zero-waste campaigns.

Today, we will introduce some of Korea's zero-waste campaigns by looking at different brands and their actions in Korea!

Ever since COVID-19, environmental interest has peaked amongst Koreans.

As part of protective measures, most people are staying home and utilizing delivery services.

Although delivery services were fairly common in Korea, the demand for delivery has sky-rocketed since the pandemic began.

According to Statistics Korea, the value of delivery services increased from 9 billion won (approx. 8 million USD) in 2019 to 1.7 trillion won (approx. 1.5 billion USD) in 2020.

The number of delivery boxes increased from 2.7 billion in 2019 to about 3.3 billion in 2020.

If delivery services have increased that much, what do you all this is the main impact that can be seen?

The amount of trash!

For example, if you order your groceries for the week, a large box sealed with tape will be delivered. Each ingredient will be wrapped in plastic, resulting in a large amount of trash.

Source: MBC Newsdesk

During the past year, many people were shocked by the amount of trash that resulted from their deliveries.

Koreans that have made a habit of recycling from a young age, began to feel a lot of stress when they saw the aftermath of their packages.

As a result, many have started to pay more attention to the kinds of containers and packaging of their purchases.

If they have to order something, might as well find something that's eco-friendly!

In response to the shift in consumer thinking, various Korean companies have adapted their containers and packaging.

Bags From Online Malls

A few days ago, we took a deeper look into the delivery service in Korea. In the blog, we introduced online malls sending bags instead of boxes.

In Korea, many people order their groceries online and get them delivered. In doing so, it produces a lot of trash.

Source: KBS news

Freshness is key when ordering food, so many online malls use ice packs.

The ice packs contain a lot of plastic which is harmful to the environment.

Source: Coupang

Both Coupang and E-Mart provide eco-friendly bags called "Fresh Bag" and "I'll Be Bag."

This bag acts like a cooler and maintains the inside temperature, so fewer ice packs are needed.

In addition, the bag can be reused so you can drastically reduce waste in the long run!

Source: E-Mart

For Coupang, if you select the "Rocket Fresh Eco" option when placing an order, the products are sent in the "Fresh Bag."

E-Mart provides an "I'll Be Bag" on your first order.

The next time you place an order, you can leave the bag out by your front door. Then the delivery person from Coupang and/or E-Mart will collect it when they drop off your next order.

All of these services are provided for free so there are no additional fees. There's no reason not to use these great services!

Eco-label & Label-free

The eco-friendly trend has also made its way to the Korean beverage industry.

All the plastic beverage bottles, that we typically think of, have vinyl labels. Before disposing of the bottle, the label needs to be removed and disposed of separately.

But since this process is inconvenient, many people tend to skip separating the label from the bottle.

Also, the label may be difficult to fully remove, so even if they are separated, it's still hard to recycle.

The beverage industry in Korea is trying to solve this issue in two ways. The first is eco-labels.

An eco-label is a label without any adhesives. It's a non-adhesive tab that makes it easier to remove the label by simply tearing at a dotted line.

Source: Sugar Bubble

Because these labels can be easily removed, it increases the likelihood of these plastic bottles getting recycled.

Source: Lotte Chilsung

Last year, Chilsung Cider, the No.1 original carbonated beverage in Korea, launched their first new flavor in 70 years with BTS as their models.

Eco-label was introduced in this beverage!

Source: Lotte Shopping

The second solution to the plastic bottle and label issue is going label-free.

The logo is engraved directly on the bottle, creating a bottle without any vinyl labels.

Source: Coca-Cola

These label-free bottles have two advantages.

First, since there is no label, it reduces the amount of plastic waste. In fact, the amount of plastic waste generated by Lotte Chilsung decreased by a total of 6.8 tons in one year thanks to "Isis Eco," Korea's first label-free bottled water!

Source: Nongshim

Second, it becomes much more convenient to recycle. Previously, we had to remove the label before throwing it away, but label-free products eliminate this step!

This dramatically increases the probability of plastic bottles being recycled.

From the perspective of the companies, it is not an easy decision to abandon colorful labels. Often times they are used for marketing purposes and help differentiate their brand from others. This could lead to a drop in sales.

However, launching a label-free beverage line, in a world where there is a heightened awareness to be economically conscious, turned out to be a great marketing decision.

Many Korean consumers are attracted to these label-free beverages and voicing that they hope to see more companies going label-free in the future.

Zero Waste Cafes

Many zero-waste cafes are also appearing in hopes of reducing unnecessary waste.

Source: Starbucks

One of the first attempts to reduce single-use plastics was paper straws. It was Starbucks that started introducing paper straws in Korea.

Paper straws became common in November 2018. At that time, among the 78 countries that Starbucks has stores in, Korea was the first country to introduce paper straws nationwide.

Initially, some people disliked paper straws because they felt the paper straws got soggy and ruined the taste of the drink.

Source: BIZ WATCH

However, as technology advanced, more and more durable paper straws were released.

Beginning in 2022, cafes and fast food stores nationwide will be banned from using plastic straws.

Previously, about 180 million plastic straws were used in Starbucks Korea for one year. That's long enough to wrap around the earth!

With the introduction of paper straws, Starbucks was able to reduce a huge amount of plastic waste.

Source: Starbucks

Now there are cups that don't require a straw at all!

This cup was also first introduced by Starbucks. It has a protruding lip, so you can easily drink your beverage without a straw.

While paper straws are much better than plastic straws, paper straws can also generate a lot of waste. So opting for no straw is the most effective!

Source: Dunkin' Donuts

Many companies such as Dunkin' Donuts and KFC have joined the movement to reduce plastic straws by releasing cups that do not require straws.

Dunkin' Donuts cups have a cute name, "D.umbler" which is a fun wordplay with "D" and "Tumbler."

In addition to reducing plastic straws, there is continued effort to reduce the use of disposable cups.

Source: SUBUSU NEWS YouTube

Many cafes provide discounts if you bring your own cup. But carrying a cup or tumbler around can be an inconvenience so there hasn't been a drastic change.

So some cafes have eliminated disposable cups altogether. Rather than relying on their customer's efforts, they changed the system.

Source: SUBUSU NEWS

Recently, a large Korean company called KT started the Zero Waste Challenge.

This challenge started within the company's cafe. What the challenge entails is relying completely on reusable cups, even for take-out orders. Instead, customers are given reusable cups they have to return later.

Source: KT

This system was well-received since they were able to protect the environment and provide great coffee to their daily customers. After this success, they even released a zero-waste picnic set.

This zero-waste picnic set can be completely upcycled when returned after use.

Recycled Empty Cosmetic Bottles

What do you do with the empty cosmetic bottles after you finish the product? Most people will just throw them away.

But cosmetic bottles are made of composite materials and are often soaked in cosmetic residue that is difficult to clean. So, unfortunately, most cosmetic bottles cannot be fully recycled.

Source: Vogue Korea

Most cosmetic brands run campaigns to collect empty bottles. When you bring in empty bottles, some stores may give points or a re-fill.

Innisfree, a popular Korean cosmetic brand, has been running their Empty Bottle Recycling Campaign since 2003.

From the 230,000 recycled bottles they collected, they created and opened a store, the Green Cycle Store: Empty Bottle Space.

You're probably curious as to what this store looks like! So come with us on a trip to their upcycled store!

Innisfree Green Cycle Store

Address: 서울특별시 종로구 소격동 152
152 Sogyeok-dong, Jongno-gu, Seoul

Hours: 11:00-20:00

In order to get to Innisfree's Green Cycle Store, you need to come out of Anguk Station (Line 3) Exit 1.

If you come out of Exit 1 and walk a little, you'll find a street like the one in the photo above.

Walk into the right alley when you find yourself here!

If you follow along the pretty stone walls, you'll eventually reach the Innisfree Green Cycle Store.

Bukchon, where the store is located, is nestled between Gyeongbokgung Palace and Changdeokgung Palace. It's famous for the Hanok Village.

The store was developed by connecting two 80-year-old hanoks and finished with material from the 230,000 crushed up recycled bottles.

We didn't have high expectations for the place but we were surprised to see its beautiful exterior! Aren't the colors gorgeous?

As soon as we entered the store, it was the bottle crusher that caught our eye.

Since recycled bottles were used to build the furniture and other objects in the store, they allow customers to experience first-hand how recycling works. If you would like to see it in action, you can ask the friendly staff to start the machine.

When the machine starts, put an empty bottle into the hole. Then the machine will move the bottle up.

When the bottle enters the machine, you'll see crushed-up bottle bits coming out of another hole.

It was fascinating and fun to see a 500ml bottle getting crushed into small pieces at this Innisfree cosmetics store!

A large monitor located on the left of the machine shows how empty bottles were used to build most of the store's interior.

It also details which bottles were used to produce each type of color.

For example, the white finishing on the far right is a combination of the containers for their White Tone Up Lotion and Cedar Wood My Body. Isn't it amazing that they can create such pretty colors by only using these bottles?

Since the launch of this campaign in 2003, Innisfree has collected over 30 million empty bottles. They also managed to plant 2,000 trees in a year as a result.

We really felt Innisfree is a brand that truly cares about the environment.

The empty bottles that they collected literally fill every corner of the store.

About 70% of the store such as the shelves, floor, and the walls are all made from empty bottles.

To the right of the cash register, there is a box for collecting empty bottles.

Returning empty bottles at this store made us feel like we were making the right choice to protect the environment.

Next time we finish a product from Innisfree, we are definitely going to visit again and return the empty bottles!

Even the vases used for decoration are made from empty bottles. It fits well into their concept of "hold beauty once again."

We kept admiring how empty bottles we previously thought were just trash, could create such a beautiful space.

There was a small garden in the middle of the store. You can sit back and relax here while browsing the store.

We felt that this area made the store look more beautiful and colorful. And it further emphasized how they are eco-friendly.

The Innisfree Green Cycle Store is a place that seems to highlight the value of sustainability.

Even if we try to live a sustainable lifestyle, it's difficult to visualize how our actions help protect the environment.

So we feel that this store was a great tangible way for consumers to see the impacts of upcycling.

Today we learned about the zero-waste trend in Korea and visited the Innisfree Green Cycle Store!

An era of "green survival" is approaching. This means that going green is no longer a choice but a must.

What are some of the ways you like to practice sustainable living? Let us know down in the comments below!