Elderly Collecting Waste Paper Face Harsh Winter... Why Has the Waste Paper Price Halved?

[Asia Economy Reporter Kang Juhee] Elderly people who make a living by collecting waste paper are suffering from financial difficulties. This is because the price of waste paper, which was 140-150 won per kg earlier this year, has dropped significantly to around 70-80 won. Waste paper collecting seniors complain that even after gathering and selling waste paper all day long, it is difficult to earn 5,000 won.

Prices Halved Compared to a Year Ago... Inventory Amount Reaches 140,000 Tons

According to the Resource Circulation Information System, the nationwide price of waste paper (corrugated cardboard) last month was 84 won per kg. Compared to 152 won in November last year, it has almost halved. The price of waste paper hit a low of 56 won per kg in March 2020 due to China's reduction in waste paper imports, then gradually rose, but has been declining again since January this year.

Generally, paper waste discharged from households goes through distribution channels such as junk dealers → waste paper balers → domestic and overseas paper mills for recycling.

However, recently, discharged waste paper has not been recycled and inventories are accumulating at balers and paper mills. According to the Ministry of Environment, as of last October, the inventory of waste paper at domestic paper mills reached 144,000 tons. The usual inventory level at paper mills is around 70,000 to 80,000 tons, so it has nearly doubled. This figure is after the government decided to stockpile 19,000 tons in six national storage warehouses. In June this year, the inventory peaked at 192,000 tons.

Waste paper piled up at the waste paper compression facility. / Photo by Ministry of Environment

When waste paper inventories pile up at balers and paper mills, waste paper prices fall, and elderly people who collect waste paper first-hand inevitably suffer. Since selling waste paper to junk dealers does not generate income, it leads to a halt in waste paper collection, which could eventually cause a 'garbage crisis' with waste paper piling up on streets everywhere. The government decided to additionally stockpile 9,000 tons of waste paper from the 2nd of this month to resolve the backlog, but the industry views this as insufficient to stabilize prices.

The price drop due to increased waste paper inventory is analyzed to be caused by decreased demand for paper products amid an economic downturn. According to statistics from the Korea Paper Association, the production volume of corrugated base paper, used as raw material for product packaging boxes, was 511,412 tons in December last year, but monthly production has fallen below 500,000 tons from January to August this year.

The fact that recycling processing costs are actually higher than the cost of producing new products is also pointed out as a cause. Kim Taehee, director of the Resource Circulation Society Solidarity, said, "Because making products from new materials is cheaper in terms of cost than recycling, there is a growing tendency to avoid recycling overall," adding, "If this situation continues, waste paper will inevitably accumulate with nowhere to go and become difficult to handle." He further advised, "Since public stockpiling is limited by available space, the government should actively intervene in the market, such as by adjusting prices."

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