Seongnam-si to Crack Down on 'Excessive Packaging' During Chuseok Holiday

[Asia Economy (Seongnam) = Reporter Lee Young-gyu] Seongnam City in Gyeonggi Province is cracking down on excessive packaging ahead of the Chuseok holiday.

Seongnam City announced on the 21st that it will conduct a focused inspection on excessively packaged products at large retail stores in the area until the 29th, as various gift sets are expected to be released ahead of Chuseok, in order to reduce unnecessary packaging waste and minimize garbage generation and resource waste.

The city plans to inspect packaging materials and methods (packaging space ratio, number of layers), and the appropriateness of separation and disposal markings, focusing on 17 large retail stores in the area, including department stores, large marts, and agricultural and marine products centers.

Products suspected of violating excessive packaging regulations will first receive a packaging inspection order.

Manufacturers (sellers) of products that receive a packaging inspection order must have the packaging inspected by a specialized packaging inspection agency and submit the results within 20 days. If standards are exceeded, a fine of up to 3 million KRW will be imposed.

A city official said, "Due to the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic, the amount of waste has surged, but the sales price of recyclables has fallen, making waste disposal difficult," and urged, "Manufacturers and sellers should comply with packaging method standards, and consumers should refrain from purchasing excessively packaged products and practice an eco-friendly consumption culture that considers the environment."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.