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With the encouragement of the Environmental Protection Department (EPD), five more mooncake manufacturers have committed to go green by joining the Scheme of Voluntary Agreement on Management of Mooncake Packaging this year, bringing the total number of signatories to 12. With their collaboration, members of the public can enjoy a greener Mid-Autumn Festival.
The EPD rolled out the scheme in 2008 to enhance the participation of the trade in the environmental management of mooncake packaging. It invites mooncake manufacturers to commit to reducing the use of packaging materials for mooncake products by signing the Voluntary Agreement on Management of Mooncake Packaging.
"The voluntary scheme is into its third year. There are five new signatories to the agreement this year - Kee Wah Bakery Ltd, Grand Hyatt Hong Kong, Hong Kong Gold Coast Hotel, Panda Hotel and da dolce Gelato Italiano. They will join the other seven mooncake manufacturers - Arome, Heng Heung, Maxim's, Saint Honore, Taipan, Four Seasons Hotel Hong Kong and Langham Place Hotel, Mongkok, Hong Kong, who signed the agreement last year, making a total of 12 signatories," the EPD spokesman said today (September 17).
Under the voluntary agreement, the mooncake manufacturers commit to conserve resources and contain the use of packaging materials through better design and production processes. They also strive to use recyclable packaging materials and support and facilitate the recovery and recycling of used packaging materials.
The EPD spokesman said, "We are still collecting data from the manufacturers who signed the agreement of their packaging usage this year. Initial information available shows that some individual products have reduced their packaging usage by 16% to 17% after a revamp of their packaging design."
To enable mooncake manufacturers to acquire more up-to-date information about global trends and developments in green packaging so as to help them better incorporate environmental considerations in the packaging design of their mooncake products, the EPD organised a workshop for the trade on the Management of Mooncake Packaging in June this year. The workshop invited experts in printing, packaging and accreditation to share their experience and knowledge of green packaging. More details of the workshop are available on the EPD's website (www.epd.gov.hk).
Besides making efforts to reduce waste at source in mooncake production, the EPD also encourages the public to return used mooncake containers and packaging through the department's source separation facilities or recovery programmes organised by other organisations. Enquiries on the recovery of mooncake containers through the department's source separation facilities can be made to the EPD at 2838 3111. The information is also available at the EPD's waste reduction webpage at www.wastereduction.gov.hk.
Ends/Friday, September 17, 2010
Issued at HKT 15:51
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