Time now for our "Life & Info" segment,... where we focus on information useful for your everyday life.<br />Today we are going to talk about a trend in Korea aimed at making the country and the earth a more sustainable place... beginning with eco-friendly packaging.<br />Our Cha Sang-mi is in the studio today.<br />Sang-mi, fill us in on the latest wrapping trend and where South Korea's online shopping stands on this issue now.<br /><br /> Sure, Mark, you know how we order everything online these days... ranging from food to furniture.<br />Well, I discovered this new trend of "packaging diet" is in vogue.<br />It literally refers to cutting down on materials harming the environment, like the masking tape, plastic and air buffers inside delivery boxes.<br /> Online shopping has become a new norm in Korean households, the domestic amount surpassing worth 94 billion U.S. dollars in 2018.<br />And the number of boxes delivered?<br /> Korea Integrated Logistics Association says that, in 2013, 1-point-4 billion boxes were delivered annually, rising to over two billion in 2016... and topping 2-point-5 billion last year. <br /> And the amount of boxes is likely to continue rising over the coming years as well.<br />With this in mind,...Mr. Hwang Geum-chan, who worked as a delivery man for over a decade, came up with a remarkable idea of removing masking tape, which takes nearly a hundred years to decompose.<br /> "Working in the parcel delivery service industry for 12 years, I thought it would be so much more convenient for people if there were boxes without tape. So I structured that box in my head and pitched the idea, and my brother designed it with me."<br />The brothers' flagship product, just as the company name, is the wing box, with small wings on the sides.<br />The 'wings' come with ecological hot melt adhesives,... harmless for people and the environment.<br />Mr. Hwang says with the masking tape gone, it reduces the stressful sound of packaging, making the packaging environment much more friendly.<br /> It's quite impressive. That will really help save the environment with no tapes used and help use open our boxes more easily too. But Sang-mi, I hear you also went to check out a completely new type of delivery box...<br /> That's right, Mark. I went to the warehouse of a delivery service company called 'Hello Nature'.<br /> This company developed and adopted a brand new delivery box called "The Green Box".<br />What's so special about it?<br /> Not only does it look completely different from a conventional paper-made box, it's also returnable.<br /> "The major feature of Green Box is it's ability to be returned, unlike conventional boxes. Also, you open the box with a zipper instead of tape and it doesn't need plastic or air buffers to keep products fresh."<br /><br /> The company says it will gradually replace all of its conventional boxes with the new box.<br /> That's good to hear. While we are talking about keeping things fresh... How about frozen food that should be stored in sub-freezing temperatures...<br /> Right, Mark, the company has come
