Towards the end of last year, the Seoul office of BAT, announced that it had installed return bins for Glo tobacco heating devices at 50 convenience stores in cities across Korea and that more were to be added throughout this year.
Glo users are now able to either go to a 7-Eleven, CU or GS25 convenience store to return their used Glo devices, and they will receive 2,000 won discount coupons for a Glo Pro Slim, BAT’s latest edition in the Glo series.
Apart from the recycling program, BAT has made efforts to go green in other ways throughout the entire life cycle of its products, from production to packaging and disposal. For example, its 16,000-square-meter tobacco production plant in Sacheon, South Gyeongsang Province, is partially powered by solar panels, and strategies to reduce water usage have been implemented throughout the company’s production plants.
In fact BAT Rothmans has been striving to acquire the International Alliance for Water Stewardship certification, a global standard given to firms who show commitment toward ensuring sustainable water management. While with regards to packaging, BAT has reduced the size of its Glo boxes by 30 percent since 2021, and has replaced plastic materials in the packaging with environmentally friendly substitutes.
Efforts by Big tobacco to be (or appear) more sustainable
Other tobacco companies are also aiming to be more sustainable. Philip Morris has been trying to reduce plastic materials, such as tape and buffers used in their Iqos packaging, while Japan’s JTI has been introducing green energy to its production and logistics facilities while similarly efforting to reduce water usage.
