Holiday Inn owner IHG strikes deal with Unilever to slash plastics use

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Illustration shows IHG logo

(Reuters) - IHG is partnering with British consumer goods group Unilever for the supply of full-sized body wash, shampoos, conditioners and other bathroom products, the Holiday Inn owner said on Monday, as it moves to eliminate single-use plastics by 2030.

Plastic pollution, particularly in the world's oceans, has become a major global concern and in March, the United Nations reached a deal to create a global treaty that could curb the single-use plastics countries produce and use.

London-listed IHG, which operates more than 6,000 hotels worldwide, said all of its markets are now covered by bulk bathroom amenity contracts, which involve larger bottles and dispensers that are not replaced after each guest stay.

The Crowne Plaza, Regent and Hualuxe owner said it expects that switching to full-size formats from miniatures will eliminate the use of at least 850 tonnes of plastic annually in its Americas region alone.

Businesses from consumer product makers to airline operators are making efforts to ditch single-use plastic, and in 2018 IHG said it planned to remove plastic straws from its hotels.

The British government last year named single-use plastic items that could be banned in England as part of a public consultation.

(Reporting by Muhammed Husain in Bengaluru; Editing by Shailesh Kuber)