Label-less plastic bottles may sound like a meager solution in light of a global environmental challenge; it promises a relatively simple solution–or at least a start to one–that may begin to improve plastic consumption to mitigate environmental damages drastically. 

The Ministry of Environment of Korea reported that “if all (approximately) 4.2 billion plastic water bottled products sold in 2019 had been replaced with label-less ones, it would have saved 24.6 million tons of plastic waste.” 

At the least, it would have removed consumers from getting rid of the sticky labels for recycling.

In response, global beverage companies began to take action.

Industry leaders such as Coca-Cola and Evian have changed the reality of product packaging by implementing label-less bottles to many of their products, setting a global example of environmental awareness on a corporate level. 

The logic behind such a movement is to remove ‘vinyl wrappers’ from plastic-bottled products eventually completely. It took quite some time for corporations to finally realize, or even admit, that their vinyl wrappings can damage the environment so severely.  However, the corporations are finally taking the first step for a change.

The movement started small, but it soon began to go viral as more brands began to participate. In Korea, leading national bottled water brands such as Icis and Samdasoo have also implemented the no-label policy. 

Worldwide, Japanese brands such as Lohas and Hong Kong’s Watson’s are also in the upkeep by taking off labels from their prime products.  

Furthermore, The U.S. Ministry of Environment appointed ‘label-less bottles’ as one of the top three most effective policies implemented as a solution to environmental issues on the global level.  

However, the administered policies in most parts of the world are yet to fully eliminate the usage of plastics.

Mr. Jun Hong, a former General Manager of Terracycle Korea (Upcycling company headquartered in the U.S.), provides insight into these policies.

Mr Hong stated that “from all the recyclable waste sorted by local households, only 3 to 5% can  get recycled without further causing damage to the environment.” 

Mr Hong also noted, “rather than pushing families to separate home trash to plastics, glasses, or papers, corporations must come up with measures to not make waste in the first place.”

Today, over 300 million tonnes of plastic waste is produced annually.

Moreover, to fuel the production of plastic waste, approximately 4,500 tonnes of crude oil are  used. It is an understatement to say that the current levels of reliance on plastic are suffocating our ecosystem in exchange for monetary gain and personal convenience.

Mr. Hong states that “it takes around 450 years for vinyl wraps to fully biodegrade.”

Further, he added, “biodegraded plastic does not transform into any substance that can better the environment.

It photo-degrades, meaning it only breaks down into smaller toxic particles and sadly becomes a ‘part’ of the damaged ecosystem.” 

These promising solutions begin in the everyday household. It requires active engagement from citizens to refrain from using plastic to-go cups for their daily coffee intake.

Granted personal choices may not make a big difference in the shortrun. Corporations need to be on board.

But, the individual choices aggregated together do make a difference and be the beginning to putting pressure on the big stakeholders. 

Fortunately, the world is changing. And as the global community witnesses progress, people, governments, and corporations are taking actions in harmony to restore what has already been damaged. 

Label-less plastic bottles have begun the conversation around environmental responsibility and consumer action. But, there certainly is more work to be done.

Sooyoung Kim

Grade 10

Branksome Hall Asia