(Hanoi, June 22, 2022) Along with the rapid development of the retail and service industries, plastic waste is a growing menace that urges relevant businesses to act now and work together in the ultimate hope of thriving sustainably. At the Talk show “Plastic Reduction Initiatives in Retail & Services” hosted by Vietnam Investment Review dated June 22, Mr. Jinwoo Song – CEO of BAEMIN Vietnam unveiled some insights into overall environmental impacts caused by the food delivery industry as well as highlighted BAEMIN’s initiatives to promote eco-friendly practices across its ecosystem. The talk show was also participated by the Chairman of the Institute of Strategy and Policy on Natural Resources and Environment and the leadership of leading brands in retail and service industries.
Plastic waste is not the only the pressing issue within the food delivery industry
As online food delivery platforms grow, one of the most pressing concerns evident is the volume of plastic waste generated throughout its operations and how it is tackled. The effectiveness in which different countries are dealing with plastic waste produced by online food delivery will be dependent on how well developed their recycling infrastructure is and the speed of online food delivery has grown.
BAEMIN updated its app feature that allows users to choose "no side dishes" option
“While the recent discussion often revolves around the plastic waste only, I think it’s equally important to review other aspects of environmental challenges posed by the food technology industry that are food waste and the increase of carbon footprint”, shared Jinwoo.
The Covid-19 pandemic has prompted the use of single-use, disposable food packaging as consumers believe single-use packaging was safer and more hygienic. Even though they have become more environmentally conscious, it’s unlikely that they will consider keeping leftover food for future meals or think to reuse the meal boxes, plastic bags, and containers to protect the environment.
From success stories in Korea…
“BAEMIN in Korea is the first-ever delivery app to receive an AAA rating (the highest rating) following the United Nations Guidelines for Reducing Plastic Waste & Sustainable Ocean and Climate Action Acceleration (UN GRP). BAEMIN has been successful in implementing a number of green projects to influence the stakeholders and help them change their behaviours since the very early days” – said Jinwoo.
BAEMIN organizes events and training activities in collaboration with representatives from the government to raise awareness among employees and promote green lifestyle
One of the highlight examples includes the in-app options “No disposable cutlery, please” and “No side dish, please” for users that aims to reduce food and plastic waste whilst saving costs for the merchants. BAEMIN has also installed collection robots in Asan city to collect plastic container lids and used AI technology to determine if they can be recycled and transformed to some higher value materials. Another highlight project is the close partnership with merchants to amplify outstanding case studies and the organisation of courses on eco-friendly practices. Public-private partnerships between BAEMIN and the local government have also been critical in helping find alternatives to plastic and conduct innovative pilot tests.
… to leading the green movements in Vietnam
In spite of being the youngest player in the food tech industry, BAEMIN Vietnam has made it clear from the beginning that sustainability lies at the heart of everything it does. Mr Jinwoo shared “We kickstarted our sustainability agenda by turning our colleagues into green ambassadors through a series of training sessions and interactive activities in partnership with the governmental officials to raise their awareness and promote greener lifestyles across our operations.”
Ông Jinwoo -Tổng giám đốc Baemin Việt Nam cam kết đồng hành tại thị trường Việt Nam
BAEMIN has also worked very closely with its international counterparts and the professional environmental agency to launch the Carbon Footprint program since 2021. In this way, BAEMIN can measure the carbon footprint left behind by the full cycle of operations (both delivery and corporate activities) and seek to offset them with environmental protection initiatives. “The market report will become available at the end of this month” added Song.
What’s more, BAEMIN plans to introduce a B2B mall for their merchants so that they can conveniently find and purchase eco-friendly packaging materials to sustain their operations. This will also come in handy as local regulations develop to promote green practices across industries.
All hands on deck to traverse this successfully
Sharing at the Talk show, Mr. Jinwoo Song also stressed that the buy-in and joining hands from all stakeholders would be the biggest challenge yet also a success factor of sustainable development.
“There’s still a gap between thinking and taking action, and it takes a lot of incentives and innovative educational content to change people’s behaviours to better tackle environmental challenges. We will do our best in the coming times to show to our stakeholders that sustainability if done in the right way will benefit greatly all relevant stakeholders” said Jinwoo.
Companies discussed this topic at the roundtable on the "Plastic Reduction Initiatives in Retail & Services” theme
Government support and endorsement were also requested at the talk show as businesses will look to work together and learn from international practices to lead their own initiatives.
With a long-term commitment to sustainable development, BAEMIN seeks to constantly renovate itself and develop its product and service lines to help people lead happier and more convenient lifestyles through the BAEMIN app.
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