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| Source: IHG. A shower with sink showing miniatures as amenities. |
IHG (InterContinental Hotels Group) is moving from miniature toiletries to bulk-sized bathroom amenities for its entire hotel estate of almost 843,000 guest rooms, with the transition to be completed during 2021. Building on its efforts to reduce plastic waste as part of a broader sustainability agenda, this pledge makes IHG the first global hotel company to commit all brands to removing bathroom miniatures in favour of bulk-size amenities.
Keith Barr, CEO, IHG, commented: “It’s more important than ever that companies challenge themselves to operate responsibly – we know it’s what our guests, owners, colleagues, investors and suppliers rightly expect. Switching to larger-size amenities across more than 5,600 hotels around the world is a big step in the right direction and will allow us to significantly reduce our waste footprint and environmental impact as we make the change.
“We’ve already made great strides in this area, with almost a third of our estate already adopting the change and we’re proud to lead our industry by making this a brand standard for every single IHG hotel. We’re passionate about sustainability and we’ll continue to explore ways to make a positive difference to the environment and our local communities.”
IHG currently has an average of 200 million bathroom miniatures in use across its entire hotel estate every year. As the new brand standard is adopted between now and 2021, the company expects to see a significant reduction in plastic waste. This commitment builds on a number of waste reduction initiatives already in place.
Switching to bulk-size amenities is a tried and tested approach at IHG. Whether for business or leisure, hotel guests increasingly want their stays to be more sustainable without any impact on the quality of their experience. Several IHG brands are already achieving this today, receiving positive guest feedback on the quality of product and the larger volume on offer:
- Six Senses Hotels Resorts Spas offers bathroom products in refillable ceramic dispensers across its entire luxury estate.
- Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants is already moving to larger-size amenities.
- IHG’s voco Hotels, EVEN Hotels and avid hotels brands have all offered bulk-size amenities since launch, working closely with suppliers to offer dispensers and products that retain a quality feel. Created with sustainability in mind, IHG’s voco Hotels brand works with suppliers to provide duvets and pillows that are filled with 100% recycled materials. This equates to 150 plastic bottles per guest room diverted from landfill. There are voco hotels in Australia and the UAE.
In October 2018, IHG announced the removal of single-use plastic straws from its hotels globally by the end of 2019. The new brand standard represents an average of 50 million straws removed from IHG’s hotel estate each year.
Several IHG hotels have partnered with technology company Winnow to automatically track, measure and reduce food waste for more sustainable and efficient restaurant and bar operations. Winnow’s artificial intelligence-enabled technology will help IHG hotels achieve a 30% reduction in food waste.
When the partnership was announced in June 2019, IHG shared that the InterContinental®Fujairah Resort, UAE had been able to reduce food waste by more than 50% in six months. IHG is currently exploring rollout to the Greater China region.
