South Korea’s Ministry of Environment launches labeling program for recycled raw materials made from waste plastics with planned expansion of incentives

On March 28, 2024, South Korea's Ministry of Environment (MOE) announced that it will implement Labeling Program for Recycled Raw Materials Made from Waste Plastics beginning on March 29, 2024 to promote the use of raw materials recycled from post-consumer waste plastics. This is a voluntary program under which manufacturers of products and containers that use recycled plastic materials at a prescribed percentage (hereinafter “threshold usage ratio”) or more may affix a label prescribed by law to their products and containers.

According to MOE, an application and supporting evidence must be submitted to participate in this program, but products that have already been certified under the International Sustainability and Carbon Certification (ISCC) system in Europe or the Recycled Claim Standard (RCS) or Global Recycled Standard (GRS) systems in the United States can submit these certificates as evidence for this program.