This article was posted on the ChosunBiz RM Report site at 5:21 a.m. on Sep. 8, 2025.
The Ministry of Environment has made it mandatory that at least 10% of materials used to manufacture bottled drinking water and nonalcoholic beverage PET bottles be recycled raw materials starting in January next year. The news has put the beverage industry on edge, prompting companies to reassess production strategies because of the added expense.
On the 9th, government and distribution industry sources said the Ministry of Environment on the 5th gave preliminary notice of a draft revision to the Enforcement Decree of the Resource Recycling Act that will require bottled water and nonalcoholic beverage makers to produce PET bottle products with at least 10% recycled raw materials starting Jan. 1 next year. Under current law, bottled water and nonalcoholic beverage PET bottles are not subject to a recycled material use requirement.
The revision includes a requirement that PET bottle products made by bottled water and nonalcoholic beverage companies use at least 10% recycled raw materials from next year, with the share gradually increasing to 30% by 2030. The measure is intended to reduce plastic use.
Recycled raw materials are environmentally friendly materials made by melting collected used plastics and recycling them. They mainly include recycled PET (PCR PET) and additives to supplement quality and strength. The Ministry of Environment expects that mandating recycled raw material use will increase input by about 20,000 tons annually.
However, PET bottles for beer were excluded from this regulation. According to the distribution industry, beer PET bottles account for about 15% of total sales. Companies say that because beer is sensitive to sunlight and oxygen, maintaining taste and aroma requires the use of brown PET bottles.
A Ministry of Environment official said beer PET bottles do not have a typical transparent single-layer structure and that the ministry plans to first build a circular economy centered on transparent PET bottles and then expand it to include beer PET bottles.
Major domestic beverage companies are already applying recycled raw materials to some products on a trial basis. LOTTE Chilsung Beverage introduced the product 'Icis 8.0 ECO 1.5ℓ' last year with a 10% recycled material ratio and this year launched the 'Chilsung Cider no-label 300㎖' product. The company is also investing in equipment so recycled plastic can be blended at a certain ratio in the preform injection molding process, the initial stage of PET bottle production.
Jeju Development Corporation, which produces Jeju Samdasoo, the No. 1 bottled water by market share, plans to sell products using 10% recycled raw materials starting next year. A Jeju Development Corporation official said they are conducting quality verification and equipment improvements for products applying 10% recycled raw materials and that they will expand eco-friendly production lines such as no-label and recycled material application equipment through a "green smart factory" scheduled for completion in 2027.
LG H&H is increasing the amount of recycled raw materials used in products including PET bottles such as Coca-Cola 1.25ℓ, cosmetic containers, refill pouches and dishwashing detergent. Dong-A Otsuka is also reported to be conducting quality tests to apply 10% recycled raw materials.
The industry worries that mandating recycled raw material use will raise costs and create quality control burdens. An industry official said simply introducing recycled raw materials into existing processes is difficult because production equipment is subtly different and that a certain level of production line modification is inevitable. Another official said recycled raw material prices are 20% to 30% higher than prices for virgin plastic raw materials and most are imported, noting that while the intention is good, cost increases are unavoidable.