Applications open Monday through Friday — district covers 30% of purchase price, up to 175,000 won, for units processing 1–5 kg per day; open to residents registered in Mapo-gu for two or more consecutive years who bought or plan to buy a unit this year; 100 households selected by electronic lottery
Mapo-gu will run a 2026 subsidy program to help residents purchase small home food-waste reducers, aiming to cut the volume of food waste generated at the household level.
Last year, 68 percent of food waste discharged in Mapo-gu came from homes. In response, the district is subsidizing the purchase of in-home reducers to tackle the problem at the source.
Eligible products are compact home reducers — using drying, grinding or fermentation methods — with a daily processing capacity of 1 to 5 kilograms. Products must carry a quality certification such as the Q Mark, K Mark, environmental label or group standard, and buyers must also verify KC safety certification at the time of purchase.
However, kitchen garbage disposals that grind food waste and flush it into the sewage system — known as "disposers" — are excluded regardless of certification status.
The program covers 100 households, with each receiving a subsidy equal to 30 percent of the purchase price, up to 175,000 won ($132).
Applicants must be registered residents of Mapo-gu who have lived in the district continuously for at least two years as of the announcement date, and must have purchased or be planning to purchase a qualifying reducer on or after Jan. 1 this year.
Support is limited to one unit per household, and households sharing the same address — even if registered separately — cannot receive duplicate subsidies. Households that have previously benefited from a small reducer subsidy program, whether through Mapo-gu or another local government, are also ineligible.
Recipients must keep the device for at least two years after receiving the subsidy; disposing of it within that period will trigger a clawback of the support funds.
Applications are accepted Monday through Friday at the Mapo-gu Office's sanitation administration division, either in person or by email. Full details and application forms are available on the Mapo-gu website under the notices and announcements section.
Recipients will be chosen by electronic lottery. In the first draw, 30 households will be selected from those with four or more registered household members; the remaining 70 slots will then be filled by lottery from all other applicants, including those not chosen in the first draw. An additional 20 reserve households will also be selected to fill any spots left by withdrawals.
Results will be announced individually in November. Selected households must submit supporting documents — including a purchase receipt, product certification, installation photos and a copy of a bank account in the applicant's name — within two weeks of notification. Those who have not yet purchased a unit may do so after selection and then submit the required documents.
Mapo-gu District Mayor Yoo Dong-gyun said he hoped the subsidy would ease the financial burden on residents who had been put off by the cost of a reducer. "I ask residents to join us in reducing food waste at home and creating a cleaner living environment," he said.
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