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4.117. The Korea Development Bank (KDB) continued to ensure a constant and reliable supply of funds for industries, with a particular focus on SMEs and micro enterprises (MEs), as well as the industries of the future. (...) The same year, it supplied funds totalling KRW 72.9 trillion, of which 65.4% was provided to SMEs and MEs; a total of KRW 5.4 trillion was provided to 333 companies through its Corporate Investment Support Program, which supports SMEs and MEs in their green and workplace safety investments. (...).

4.120. (...) The FSC financial policy roadmap for 2019 provided (...) a financial support programme of KRW 15 trillion over the next three years to support SMEs' investment in equipment, environmental safety facilities, and business reshuffling; (...).

4.122. In line with Article 32 of the 2010 Low-Carbon, Green-Growth Framework Act, measures to promote green certification entail extending loans for the purpose of disseminating new and renewable energy, providing linkages to the SME policy fund, intensive support for technology guarantees, and support for export financing and insurance. As at end-2020, new technology appraisal guarantees of KRW 885.5 billion were provided to 1,470 leading green-growth industry companies.

4.124. A July 2020 Korean New Deal initiative (Sections 1.2.1 and 1.2.4) to invest KRW 160 trillion (USD 133 billion) over 2020-25 based on two main policies, the Digital New Deal (KRW 58.2 trillion) and the Green New Deal (KRW 73.4 trillion), aimed to bolster job creation and enhance the competitiveness of the domestic manufacturing sector by increasing public investment in digital and green energy infrastructure. (...) The initiative includes projects for expanding the integration of 5G and AI into industries, promoting remote working in SMEs, promoting prospective businesses to lead the green industry, establishing low-carbon and green industrial complexes, promoting renewable energy use and supporting a fair transition, and expanding the supply of electric and hydrogen vehicles. (...).

4.126. Energy subsidization appears to remain in place for the coal industry and electricity production and pricing. (...) Subsidies for promotion of solar panels and other renewable energy sources to support the shifting away from nuclear and fossil fuel have been on the rise, from KRW 0.51 trillion in 2016 to KRW 0.5 trillion in 2017, KRW 0.6 trillion in 2018, and KRW 0.64 trillion in 2019 on the basis of government budget expenditure. According to another source, these amounts were much higher at KRW 1.79 trillion in 2016, KRW 2.06 trillion in 2017, and KRW 2.6 trillion in 2018. Subsidies under a renewable energy certificate (REC) system that requires a power generator to buy the certificate from the private power market when it fails to meet a quota requirement for power generation using renewable sources have been in place.

4.132. (...)The Korean Agency for Technology and Standards (KATS), under MOTIE, develops, manages, and implements Korean Industrial Standards (KS), based on the Framework Act on National Standards and the Industrial Standardization Act, jointly with nine ministries including the Ministry of Science and ICT (MSIT), Ministry of Environment (MOE), and Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries (MOF). (...).

4.138. As at 2020, 20,916 [standards (voluntary) set by KATS] KSs had been adopted (20,495 in 2016) and mainly allocated as follows: (...) and food, environment, etc. (1,339, 6.4%). (...).

4.147. The Chemicals Control Act (CCA), which protects public health and prevents environmental harm caused by chemical substances by strengthening the criteria for the handling and management of chemicals, previously managed under the Toxic Chemicals Control Act (TCCA), was amended in and enforced from 2015. Several additional revisions of the amended CCA were enforced from April 2021. It now requires that business places handling hazardous chemicals shall prepare and implement a chemical accident prevention management plan, comply with standards of handling facility, undergo regular inspections, and fulfil other obligations such as business permission and regular education programs. (...). In 2019, the MOE published partial amendments to the Rule of the Act on the Promotion of Saving and Recycling of Resources to promote recycling and reduce unnecessary waste. These amendments require packages to be evaluated, graded, and labelled for the recyclability of packaging materials.

4.154. Under the Act on the Management and Support for the Promotion of Eco Friendly Agriculture/Fisheries and Organic Foods (New Organic Act) (last amended by Act No. 18026, 13 April 2021), as from 2 June 2013 a mandatory organic certification programme requires all domestic and imported organic fresh (unprocessed) and processed produce and livestock products to be certified by a MAFRA National Agricultural Products Quality Management Service (NAQS). As of December 2020, 29 Korean certifying agencies (15 in 2015) and 2 foreign certifying agencies (4 in 2015) were accredited by MAFRA's NAQS for certification of organic processed food products. Korea maintains a zero-tolerance policy for the inadvertent presence of biotech content in processed organic products (Sections 3.3.2.6 and 3.3.3.1); for any organic products that test positive for genetically modified organisms (GMOs), importers/producers can be instructed to remove an organic claim from the product label, and NAQS may investigate the case to see if there is any intentional violation. In lieu of certification by accredited certifying agents, the Act allows MAFRA to have an equivalency agreement on processed organic products with foreign trade partners; two bilateral equivalency arrangements (Korea–United States (2014), Korea-European Union (2015)) allow for processed food products certified as organic in the United States, the European Union, or Korea to be sold as organic in any of the three markets without having to go through another costly certification process under the importing country's standards.

4.156. During the review period, Members raised specific trade concerns (STCs) at the Committee on Technical Barriers to Trade regarding several measures under consideration or taken by Korea (e.g. (...) package recycling, energy efficiency management equipment, household chemical and biocidal products, (...)).