A child browses products at the toy section of a large supermarket in Seoul. (Image courtesy of Yonhap)
SEOUL, June 10 (Korea Bizwire) — South Korea will require manufacturers and importers of plastic toys to recover and recycle a portion of their products starting in 2026, under a revised regulation aimed at curbing plastic waste.
The Ministry of Environment announced Monday that it will begin a 40-day legislative notice period on an amendment to the Enforcement Decree of the Resources Recycling Act, which expands the Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) system to include plastic toys. The revision is part of broader efforts to reduce the environmental impact of short-lived plastic products.
Under the amended law, companies producing or importing plastic toys will be obligated to collect and recycle a government-mandated percentage of their annual shipments. Businesses with annual revenues below 1 billion won or annual output under 10 tons (or imports below 300 million won or 3 tons) will be exempt from the rule.
Most toys are made from mixed plastic materials, making recycling difficult. An estimated 80–90 percent of discarded plastic toys are incinerated or sent to landfills, with virtually no recycling currently taking place.
Although precise national data on toy waste is lacking, global estimates suggest that 2.4 million tons of plastic toys are discarded annually, with approximately 120 tons in South Korea alone.
The Ministry noted that instead of managing recycling independently, most companies are expected to join a producers’ association and pay recycling fees. The ministry also argued that inclusion in the EPR system would help reduce costs for businesses, who would otherwise face up to 4.2 billion won in annual waste management charges or as much as 3.5 billion won in fines for noncompliance.
South Korea first introduced the EPR system in 2003. It currently applies to four types of packaging materials, 24 designated products such as fluorescent lamps, and 50 categories of electrical and electronic goods. From 2026, nearly all electrical and electronic products—excluding military and medical equipment—will also be subject to EPR obligations.
M. H. Lee (mhlee@koreabizwire.com)
