E-mart said Friday that eight new partners have joined its resource recycling campaign "GaPlJiU."
According to E-mart, the new participants are Blue Siren, the Korea Agricultural and Fishery Recycling Business Mutual Aid Association, the World Federation of United Nations Associations, the Naseom Foundation, the Korea Cleaning Association, Moorim Paper, Korea Clean Beverage, and Mirae Asset Financial Services. They join existing partners including TerraCycle, P&G Korea, the Korea Marine Environment Corporation, Brita Korea, the Resource Circulation Solidarity, SSG.com, Gmarket, Shinsegae I&C, Josun Hotels & Resorts, and Content Lab Vivo.
"GaPlJiU," short for the Korean phrase meaning "Bring Plastic, Protect Our Seas," was launched in 2018 by three companies: E-mart, TerraCycle, and P&G Korea. It has since grown into one of Korea's leading resource recycling campaigns, now involving 19 companies across retail, manufacturing, and public institutions.
From 2018 through March this year, E-mart collected a total of 64 tons of plastic through plastic collection bins installed at its stores nationwide. The collected plastic was upcycled into 21,000 traffic safety reflectors for children, 13,500 foldable shopping carts, and 3,000 grabbers, which were donated to local communities.
Starting this year, E-mart plans to expand the scope of upcycling beyond high-quality recyclable plastic to include low-quality waste plastic that had previously been difficult to recycle, producing upcycled products to give back to local communities. The company will also strengthen "Sea of the Month," a citizen-participation coastal cleanup program, and "Children's Marine Experience Education," which commemorates Korea's Day of the Sea, to raise environmental awareness among future generations.
"We hope the 'GaPlJiU' campaign, built on cooperation with diverse partners, will further spread social consensus on environmental protection," said Lee Chang-yeol, head of ESG at E-mart. "E-mart plans to continue offering eco-friendly initiatives that customers can participate in together."
