Ask Real Korea

  South Korea's official garbage bags When inflation anxiety takes hold, everyday people rarely respond by hoarding gold or emptying their bank accounts. But here in South Korea, they make quiet, highly practical adjustments, like clearing out the local supply of trash bags. In the spring of 2026, Korea’s official garbage bags, jongnyang-je bong-tu  (종량제 봉투) , briefly became an unlikely object of public anxiety. Under the national waste disposal system, residents cannot use generic plastic bags for household trash. You must purchase government-mandated bags, with the price acting as a local waste disposal fee. It is a highly efficient system that usually operates completely in the background of daily life. That changed in March. Fueled by the prolonged Middle East crisis pushing up global oil and petrochemical costs, news of a potential supply disruption hit the public. Shoppers began buying these bags in unusually large quantities. Purchase limits appeared at retail reg...