eFM News

[Anchor]

South Korea is considered by many to be a paradise for delicious delivery food.

With the rise of delivery apps in recent years, ordering has become more easy and quick, but this convenience has also exponentially increased packaging and plastic waste, adding to the country's trash crisis, as our Claudia Kim reports.

[Reporter]

In South Korea, you can order food anytime, anywhere, and for cheap.

Getting food delivered has become easier with the rise of smartphones and apps, which can bring food to your door with the tap of a finger.

Behind this convenience are mountains of plastic waste -- containers, lids, plastic wrap, spoons, cups, straws and plastic bags.

A delivery app user, Lee Yeon-ju, says she feels torn about ordering delivery.

[CLIP: Delivery App User]
"I like delivery food but I feel bad sometimes because everything comes with so much plastic. It's really hard to recycle them so I just throw them out."

Business is booming for the delivery food market, which raked in some 20 trillion won in 2018.

The delivery food app industry alone estimates 1.5 million orders are made each day, and the amount of plastic trash as a result is staggering.

The central and local governments, which have been slow to address waste issues, began campaigns last year to ban single-use bags and reduce the use of plastics overall.

In line with such moves, some delivery apps have added the option to deselect disposable spoons and chopsticks with orders.

Green Future, an environmental organization that works with Seoul city, says another possible option is bringing back reusable bowls and utensils for food deliveries, which used to be common until the early 2000s.

Other experts point out that manufacturers need to be regulated more and supported to produce more eco-friendly, bio-degradable materials and packaging.

An official from the environment ministry, however, says regulations are tricky since the cost of changing the current plastic-ridden system will fall on consumers.

The ministry plans to release a roadmap on curbing the use of disposables in October.

Claudia Kim, eFM News.■