- Mineral water bottles, beverage bottles… Empty them, remove the labels, crush them, and close the cap -

- Incheon to focus on promoting the recycling program for clear PET bottles across the City between April and June -

Incheon Metropolitan City (Mayor: Yoo Jeong-bok) announced that it is launching a “Recycling program for clear PET bottles” from April to June to promote waste recycling and secure high-quality raw materials for recycling.

This new policy is aimed at raising the awareness of locals on the recycling program for clear PET bottles, and to increase public participation as the program gets ready for its third year.

Korean companies produce roughly 200,000 tons of bottled water and beverage products using clear PET bottles annually, but only about 36,000 tons are recycled properly. Incheon collected 4,500 tons last year.

In order to process clear PET bottles into high-quality recycled raw materials for food containers, long fibers, and containers/sheets, they must be emptied cleanly, labels (recycled as plastic/vinyl) must be removed, the bottles must be crushed, and the cap needs to be closed. Also, when putting them out to be collected, clear PET bottles need to be separated from other general plastics.

 

With landfills in the metropolitan area set to become completely prohibited from 2026, Incheon is looking to reduce its use of disposable items. It is distributing food waste processing machines, has new stores as part of the “Incheon resource recycling program,” and is installing unmanned collecting machines for clear PET bottles to reduce waste by using and reusing resources for as long as possible. Last year, with an agreement with “Incheon Takju,” 660,000 (23 tons) colored Makgeolli bottles of the “Soseongju Plus” brand were replaced with clear plastic bottles. Incheon also employed similar initiatives in an attempt to reduce waste and stimulate recycling.

 

The City now has “Incheon resource recycling stores” and unmanned clear PET bottle collection machines to reward consumers with cash or e-Eum points whenever they recycle clear PET bottles. Starting this year, additional carbon-neutral points will be paid to citizens who use Incheon’s resource recycling stores.

Kim In-soo, Director of the Environment Bureau of Incheon, said, “The cleaner the clear PET bottles for mineral water and beverages are, the more pure and high-quality recycled raw materials we can make. Thus, it is essential for people to recycle clear PET bottles the right way.” He added, “I hope this program will serve as an opportunity to raise awareness of the correct recycling of recyclable resources, including clear PET bottles.”