Japan's ecoloco launches recycled plastic trash bags, reducing naphtha usage by about 40%

Recently, Japan’s Askul announced that it will begin selling commercial garbage bags made from recycled plastic starting in July. Compared to previous products, the use of naphtha as a raw material has been reduced by about 40%. In the context of concerns over naphtha supply due to the situation in the Middle East, this move helps ensure a stable supply of garbage bags. Sales of the commercial garbage bag "Matakul" will start in mid-July, with capacities of 70 liters and 90 liters. The product uses "stretch film," which is employed in the recycling logistics process to prevent the collapse of goods such as cardboard boxes, as a raw material. The stretch film will be collected and recycled from the Kansai base among 10 logistics bases nationwide. By utilizing waste materials generated internally, the company aims to establish a stable raw material procurement system.

The company has been committed to the development of products using recycled plastics since 2020. After 2022, it started to reuse old transparent file folders as resources and has launched around 60 products including ballpoint pens and dustpans. In April, the revised "Act on Promotion of Effective Utilization of Resources" came into effect, requiring resource reuse in specific product areas. The targets include household appliances such as automobiles, air conditioners, televisions, refrigerators, and washing machines, as well as container packaging. For manufacturers producing and selling a certain quantity, the use of recycled plastics is mandatory.