Perhaps one of the merits of living in a tiny country is that waste-related policies make way for development of unique related products. Environmental consciousness is forced instead of being voluntary, but at the end of the day, it’s good for the environment.

One of the most annoying things about Korean waste policy is that you have to separate food waste from regular waste. This is not only annoying but also disgusting, but you have to do it if you don’t want to pay a fine. The food waste is sent to a plant that converts it to compost; regular waste is sent to the incinerator or landfill.

To address problems such as decimating landfill space, the government began requiring people to buy special garbage bags, which are different colors depending on where you live. Any trash that is not in these designated bags will not be taken away. Therefore, one of the first trash-related “inventions” that I saw as result of this policy was a home trash-pressing machine. These “machines” were all the rage on TV home shopping programs; basically, the machine presses your trash into the bag so you can fit more trash into each bag.

The latest “inventions” address food waste. One of the most popular and most coveted kitchen appliance these days is a food waste processing machine. The functions of the machines differ according to brand, but basically, what it does is dry the food and then make it into a powder- eliminating smell while saving space. Of course, this machine runs on electricity, so one can debate whether or not it is truly environmentally-friendly.