Pilot hotel : InterContinental Marseille – Hôtel Dieu, Marseille (France)

The pilot project demonstrated that it was possible to reduce the consumption of single-use plastics within a hotel, while involving the staff, without reducing the quality of customer service and without additional financial costs for the establishment.

The approach : 

The collaboration between the members of the Business Club and various stakeholders has enabled us to develop a methodology for reducing the use of single-use plastic in a hotel. In the first stage, eighteen plastic products and packaging were prioritised and selected for treatment during the project: toilet kits (including shaving, dental and manicure kits), children’s welcome kits, courtesy trays in rooms, other food products/packaging and, finally, water bottles.

The hotel and the multi-stakeholder group formed by the College looked at the possibilities for eliminating, reducing or substituting the various products targeted. Among the possible solutions, different levels of change were considered, ranging from a total overhaul of the way things are done (e.g. hot chocolate served on demand in the room) to a simple substitution by another material (e.g. paper packaging rather than plastic). The involvement of the scientific committee ensured that no environmental impact was transferred with the new solutions proposed.

After three months of testing to ensure the operational feasibility of implementing the alternatives, we took a step back to check acceptance by customers and staff, as well as the economic and environmental viability of the solutions. The results obtained in three months are encouraging, since for the 18 single-use plastics targeted, we observed :

Read more about the method and all the results of the project here.

Pilot hotel : La Badira, Hammamet (Tunisia)

Officially launched on 1 June 2023, the replication of the project at La Badira hotel (Tunisia) aims to support the hotel in its transition ‘Towards a zero single-use plastic hotel’.

The approach : 

In order to multiply the impact of the project and test the method in a different context, the Business Club is helping the hotel La Badira, a member of the Leading Hotels of the World, based in Hammamet, to adapt the approach.

Over and above the differences in the local context, the starting point within the establishment was also different from that of the InterContinental. For example, La Badira had already eliminated or replaced most of the single-use plastics in contact with customers. The project therefore focuses mainly on the remaining single-use plastics in the back office, particularly in the kitchen.  

The prioritisation phase resulted in the selection of 5 single-use plastics to be dealt with over the project period : food preservation trays, coffee capsules, food preservation films, pasta packaging and bags for on-site storage of traditional products bought in bulk. A benchmark of alternatives, accompanied by a simplified environmental analysis, was carried out in order to find solutions that would reduce the amount of single-use plastic consumed by the hotel, while meeting the challenges of complying with hygiene standards and reducing the environmental impact.

At the same time, to promote the approach, a College of Hotels has been created by key partners including Active Citizen for Development, Iberostar, BeMed, the Fédération Tunisienne d’Hôtellerie and the National Tunisian Office of Tourism. This collaborative effort aims to promote a holistic approach to waste management and sustainable practices, including the elimination of single-use plastics, while addressing a broader range of environmental concerns.

Activities are still ongoing.