BANGKOK, 25 March 2019: Centara Hotels & Resorts has pledged to eliminate single use plastic products at all of its hotels by the end of the year.
The pledge to ban single-use plastics is part of wider initiatives outlined in the company’s “2019 Sustainability Plan”.
In addition to banning single-use plastic products, the goals call for reducing food waste and expanding support for local farming and produce-growing communities.
Single-use plastic products will be phased out by the end of the year as part of the “Centara Earth Care,” the group reported.
The campaign also encourages hotel guests to be proactive about energy saving, waste reduction and sustainable environmental tourism.
The sustainability plan covers five types of single-use plastic items, including drinking straws, laundry bags, take-away food containers, fitness centre and poolside plastic bottles, and plastic guest room amenities. They are being replaced with items made from materials designed to minimise environmental impact.
“Centara strives to operate ethically and sustainably in a balanced manner across the entire portfolio whilst providing an exceptional level of Thai hospitality,” said, chief executive officer, Thirayuth Chirathivat. “We are committed to selecting environmentally friendly produce which, in turn, enables us to further incorporate sustainable strategies and development into our products and services, creating shared value at an environmental, social and economic level wherever we operate. We are also committed to ensuring a respectful, safe and healthy environment to the larger society and our future generations.”
Centara began phasing out single-use plastic products in 2018 across all 39 of its operating properties.
The group is also tackling food waste and minimising each property’s carbon footprint by purchasing fresh local foods from herb, fruit and vegetable growers.
The company attributes much of its carbon footprint reduction to making approximately 70% of total produce purchases from local sources. Beyond the economic benefits to the community, expanding farm-to-table dining enables each property to provide the freshest available food items to guests.
https://www.centarahotelsresorts.com/
