Part of a letter from an elementary school student arriving at Maeil Dairy’s headquarters. Photo Maeil Dairy
Businesses strive to come up with products and services that consumers will love. Better performance, better design, more reasonable price… . Now there is something that cannot be left out. Be more environmentally friendly right away.
If consumers have complained about quality and service in the past, they are exerting a strong influence to change companies by actively pointing out environmental pollution factors and urging improvement, as do environmental activists.
Accepted the German headquarters for the 10,000 signature campaign
A bulletin that announced the implementation of the Brita Korea recycling program (left) and waste filters were collected. Photo’Almaeng Store’
The representative one is Britta Korea, a water purifier company. The German company Britta has been running a program in Europe where filters are collected and recycled directly in Europe. This is because the water purifier filter, which needs to be changed once a month, contains activated carbon and ion exchange resin in plastic, and can pollute the environment if discarded.
However, the Korean branch did not introduce a waste filter collection program, saying,’You can throw it away as recycled waste.’ Ten years later, consumers, mainly focused on research centers and grain stores, launched the’Brita Attack (Protest/Request) Campaign’. They held a signing campaign asking for a waste filter collection point and recycling filter, and received 14,454 signatures, and sent an official letter requesting a formal response from Britta Korea in December last year. Eventually, Britta Korea officially announced that “from 2021, we will implement a filter collection and recycling program and prepare a system that can dispose of the filler material so as not to be harmful to the environment.”
Lee Joo-eun, co-president of the shop, said, “Britain in the United States also did not have a recycling program, but it was changed because of the signing campaign. We started because we could change it if we asked for it, and we got positive results.” However, he said, “I am planning to visit Britta Korea in the first half of the first half with 1,500 waste filters gathered from all over the country because there is no proposal to implement exactly when and how.”
The yellow spam cap is gone
CJ CheilJedang’s uncovered spam gift set. Photo CJ CheilJedang
Domestic companies are also responding quickly to the opinions of’eco-friendly consumers’. Right now, CJ CheilJedang introduced a gift set of’Spam without a lid’ this New Year’s Eve. This is the result of last year’s consumer gathering’Earth Keeper’s Essencedam’ campaign to return the spam cover. Since the yellow plastic lid, which is a symbol of spam, does not have much effect on sealing products that have already been opened, the manufacturer’s advice was based on the advice of the manufacturer that it is better to keep the remaining spam separately.
Sudamsdam raised the question,’Then, is the lid virtually unnecessary garbage?’, and CJ CheilJedang announced that it will remove the lid from all spam gift sets until Chuseok this year.
Maeil Dairy made straw-free up and down farm milk with letters and straws (left) sent by elementary school students. Photo Maeil Dairy
Most of the protests from consumers are behind the’plastic out’ products that are blowing hard recently. In November of last year, Maeil Dairy received a delivery box containing 200 straws removed from its products and 29 hand letters.
In this letter, written by students in 6th grade 2nd class at Yeonggwang Jungang Elementary School, Jeollanam-do, “straws can have a detrimental effect on sea creatures.” I promised not to do it.” The company immediately decided to get rid of the straws, and last month it launched Sangha Farm Organic Sterile Milk.
‘Eco-friendly’ customers are right
Lotte Mart is also planning to change the entire bottled water of its own brand (PB) to bottled water without a label by the first half of this year based on consumer reactions. As the first step, it released’Choice L Save Water Eco (ECO)’ at the end of last month.
Lee Hyo-jae, product planner of Lotte Mart’s Food PB Development Team, said, “I looked at consumer reactions to the label-free’Isis ECO’ bottled water launched by Lotte Chilsung Beverage last year. Most of them said,’I will repurchase because there is no label’. I was convinced that it was strong.” In fact, more than 10 million ISIS without a label have been sold.
‘Choice L Save Water Eco’ bottled water (left) that removed the label of Lotte Mart and the’Eco Refill Station’ that E-Mart is expanding. Photo maker
The’detergent refill vending machine’, the first in the industry by E-Mart, also got an idea from’Customer Voice’. Consumers said that it is not good for the environment to throw out clean plastic containers whenever they run out of detergent, and demanded,’If there is a container, I can store the contents.’
Accordingly, the company installed’Eco Refill Station’ at E-Mart’s Seongsu branch and Traders’ Anseong branch, where laundry detergent and fabric softener can be refilled, and by the end of this month, Wangsimni, Eunpyeong, Jukjeon, Yeongdeungpo and Traders Suwon and Songlim branches It is a plan to expand to such as.
An official in the distribution industry said, “Consumers’ eco-friendly calls are getting stronger with the focus on online cafes and social media (SNS). If you actively respond to their opinions, you have a better image as a company that communicates the company’s voluntary eco-friendly actions. Can be built.”
Reporter Soah Lee [email protected]