KCC Introduces Recycling and Eco-Friendly Design Standards... Equivalent to Planting 533 Trees Annually

Application of Biodegradable Sugarcane Paper
100% Recyclable Printing with Uncoated Method
Strengthening ESG Management

KCC is strengthening its ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) management by introducing a new design standard that actively incorporates recycled and eco-friendly materials.

On the 30th, KCC announced that it has implemented a design standard that fully switches the paper used in promotional printed materials such as catalogs and sample books produced since January this year to recycled and eco-friendly specifications.

Promotional printed materials applying the recycling and eco-friendly design standards introduced by KCC. (Photo by KCC)

Various promotional printed materials, produced at an annual average scale of about 150,000 copies, utilize non-wood paper made from processed sugarcane byproducts and apply uncoated and special processing methods that facilitate easy separation and disposal, expected to have the effect of planting approximately 533 trees of 30-year-old timber.

Applying the natural forest recommended planting spacing from the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport’s approved landscaping design standards, this corresponds to an area of about 15,300㎡, similar to the Nanjisaengtae Forest Ecological Island, and it is also expected to reduce carbon dioxide emissions and greenhouse gases generated from paper consumption.

Through this recycled and eco-friendly design management initiative, by changing the previously difficult-to-recycle coated paper application, the entire printed material can now be recycled without separate separation and disposal. The paper KCC uses is an eco-friendly product certified for biodegradability related to paper pulp by Germany’s ISEGA.

While coated paper cups take 20 years to biodegrade by microorganisms when buried, the newly introduced paper requires only three months. Moreover, it is made from sugarcane byproduct pulp without the need for logging, providing environmental benefits that contribute to responding to climate change and global warming.

Additionally, the printing range has been reduced so that only 25-40% of the total paper area based on A4 size is printed. Instead of reducing printed content, KCC plans to significantly reduce the overall volume of promotional printed materials by utilizing QR codes that provide information on product-related technical data and details.

Maeng Hee-jae, Executive Director of KCC Color & Design Center, stated, “As a company actively practicing ESG management, it is highly meaningful that KCC is presenting and implementing a new standard in the design field. By using recycled and eco-friendly materials in all promotional materials, we plan to strengthen our image as an eco-friendly company and expand the application not only to promotional printed materials but also to product packaging and various other fields.”

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