Geumcheon-gu Offers Up to 280,000 KRW Subsidy for Purchase of Small Household Food Waste Reducers

Geumcheon-gu, Seoul announced on July 4 that it will begin accepting applications for subsidies for the purchase of small household food waste reducers for the second half of the year starting from July 14.

This initiative aims to reduce the generation of food waste and create a more pleasant living environment for residents. In the second half of the year, subsidies will be provided to 162 households, covering up to 40% of the purchase cost, with a maximum of 280,000 KRW per household. In the first half of the year, 117 households were selected to receive subsidies for small household food waste reducers.

Provided by Geumcheon-gu.

Eligible applicants are households whose registered address in the resident registration system is in Geumcheon-gu as of the announcement date (July 1, 2025) and who have purchased or plan to purchase a reducer after July 1. However, the purchased reducer must be a product certified with quality marks such as Group Standard, Environmental Label, K Mark, or Q Mark. Products such as ‘kitchen waste disposers’ that discharge into the sewage system, secondhand purchases, or items received as gifts or donations from others are excluded from support.

Subsidies will first be granted to 48 households (30%) who are statutory welfare recipients, including recipients of the National Basic Livelihood Security Program, low-income households, and single-parent families. An additional 114 households (70%) from the general population will then be selected to receive support.

Applications can be submitted by visiting the local community service center in the applicant’s residential area or through the district office’s website. Community service centers will accept applications from statutory welfare recipients from July 14 to July 18, and from general households from July 21 to August 1. Residents who are unable to visit in person, such as office workers, can apply online via the district office website from August 4 to August 8.

Households applying for the subsidy must submit a survey on the amount of food waste generated before and after installing the reducer in order to receive the subsidy. If the reducer is disposed of within two years, the subsidy may be reclaimed.

Geumcheon-gu stated, “According to the results of Seoul’s 2022 pilot project for small reducers, the use of one small reducer per household led to a 70.5% reduction in food waste compared to the previous year. If Geumcheon-gu supports 279 reducers this year (117 in the first half and 162 in the second half), it is expected to reduce food waste by approximately 20 tons annually.”

Yoo Seonghun, Mayor of Geumcheon-gu, said, “Through proactive administration such as providing purchase subsidies for reducers, we expect to effectively reduce household food waste, significantly contribute to environmental protection, and improve residents’ convenience. We ask for the active interest and participation of our residents.”

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