A key feature of the new law is a green legal framework in which e-commerce businesses will be required to disclose their compliance with clean business standards set by the ministry. The disclosures will be made public so that consumers can make informed choices.
Minister of industry and trade Nguyen Hong Dien confirmed that green practices in e-commerce would become mandatory regulations in the revised draft, according to a domestic news agency.
About four-fifths of online consumers in the country believe that e-commerce has a negative or very negative impact on the environment, according to a 2024 survey conducted by the Vietnam E-commerce Association (VECOM). Around a fifth think the environmental impact of e-commerce is even greater than traditional commerce.
The VECOM survey shows that 79 per cent of online shoppers want the government to issue and enforce environmental protection regulations in e-commerce; 71 per cent suggest that businesses disclose green packaging options; and 61 per cent emphasise the importance of media and educational campaigns to raise awareness.
Data from iDEA shows the country’s e-commerce sector has witnessed an average annual growth of 20 per cent over the last five years.
The value of the e-commerce market in the country was estimated at around $25 billion last year, accounting for about 9 per cent of the country's total retail sales of goods and services.
However, rapid growth in this sector brings with it a deluge of waste. According to WWF Vietnam, the country’s e-commerce sector consumed 332,000 tonnes of packaging in 2023 alone, of which 171,000 tonnes were plastic packaging.
If no measures are taken to reduce waste, the amount of plastic waste from e-commerce could reach an estimated 800,000 tonnes per year by 2030, projections iindicate.
Transportation activities for e-commerce also leave a large carbon footprint.
ALCHEMPro News Desk (DS)
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