Samsung is getting rid of plastic packaging used in its products to switch with "environmentally sustainable elements" within the first six months of 2019.
The South Korean company said it has formed a team to think of creative ways of green wrapping. From its smartphones and tablets to its wearables, Samsung is scrapping off plastic from the packaging.
Samsung Gadgets Affected
It said pulp molds will take the place of plastic holder trays. Chargers, meanwhile, will lose the glossy aesthetic and will not sport plastic films but will have a matte finish.
As for the other products of Samsung, plastic protection film in refrigerators, televisions, and washing machines among many other appliance will be substituted with bags that are made of "plastic wastes and non-fossil fuel materials like starch or sugar cane."
Samsung also announced that it will be using paper packaging that was approved by environmental organizations in 2020. After 11 years, the company targets the collection of 7.5 million tons of ditched products and aims to use 500,000 tons of recycled plastics.
Shift To Sustainable Option
Samsung's Global Customer Satisfaction Center head Gyeong-bin Jeon said the company's pledge is a bid to address the alarming environmental problems the world is facing today. The official further explained that there will be more efforts in shifting to environmentally sustainable materials in the future even if that meant more expenses.
It is not clear, though, whether the willingness of the company to shoulder the additional cost for eco-friendly materials meant that prices of the gadgets will increase too. Meanwhile, the move may be a longtime answer heeded by environmental groups that criticized Samsung in the past.
Two years ago, during the Mobile World Congress conference, a presumed Greenpeace member held a yellow banner that had the recycle symbol as a Samsung exec was discussing. The man was immediately escorted out of the meeting.
