Taiwan's food delivery industry generates tons of trash, and the environment ministry is looking at how to get vendors to cut back.
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00:00Taiwan loves food delivery. A 2023 survey by think-tank Market Intelligence and Consulting
00:05Institute found 71% of the population uses delivery apps. But there's a cost to the convenience.
00:12More waste for the country's already overwhelmed landfills. The Environment Ministry wants
00:16to change things. On Tuesday, Environment Minister Peng Qiming hosted a roundtable with
00:21industry reps to discuss cutting back on packaging.
00:24Delivery has become a national habit. We want to make it greener and more eco-friendly.
00:32In the future, it will be a part of our green production.
00:35Those in the food delivery business say there are high practical hurdles, however.
00:39If the soup leaks out and the customer doesn't want it, I'll absorb it myself.
00:43After all, we're delivering, so we tend to pack it in a bag at home.
00:47If it's an eco-friendly delivery, doesn't that mean you have to do one more step?
00:50Your food has to be delivered to the store first.
00:53If we can, we'll do it outside.
00:56But the ministry says the practice won't be mandatory. It says it will encourage simple
01:01steps to begin with, like sending out reusable cups in place of the throwaway paper cups
01:05in common use now.
01:18In other words, the idea of Tuesday's roundtable wasn't to solve the packaging problem,
01:21in one go, but to open a conversation about how to start addressing it.
01:26And despite the difficulties, some eateries have already been trying for some time.
01:30NGO Rethink is one group that's helping them to do it.
01:34It's worked with one of the Big Two delivery services to encourage shops to cut back on
01:38everything from food waste to packaging.
01:41By making the stores' eco-friendly activities a part of the food delivery business,
01:49the stores will be able to sell more products to their customers.
01:54This will make the customers think,
01:56hey, eco-friendly is something that can increase sales.
02:00So it will motivate people.
02:02So in the end, we came up with this system.
02:04We've come this far since 2021.
02:09This group agrees that eliminating waste completely is a tough task.
02:13Containers need to be spill- and leak-proof.
02:16But it says simple things, like cutting back on non-recyclables,
02:18like plastic wrap, foil, and rubber bands, is one starting point.
02:22Already, it says its program cuts 160,000 tons of trash per year.
02:27And while this is still more of a showcase than a sweeping program,
02:30there's promise in taking the trash out of Taiwan's food delivery industry.
02:35Eason Chen and John Van Triest for Taiwan Plus.