Thomas Cook to remove 70 million items of single-use plastics over the next year

Thomas Cook have announced their commitment to remove 70 million single-use plastic items from their operations over the next 12 months.

This plastic will come from across operations at Thomas Cook as well as on their planes and their own brand hotels.

The travel agents pledge has come after one third of their customers said that the amount of plastic litter on the beaches affected their decision on whether to visit that destination again. Thomas Cook also found that many of these customers said they could do without a lot of these single-use plastic items.

The campaign, known as noplaceforplastics, will ensure that plastic waste in the supply chain is eliminated wherever possible. This will involve substituting existing plastic items for sustainable alternatives and giving a new lease of life to plastic that would otherwise be thrown away.

Thomas Cook will also work with destination governments, other tour operators, their customers and employees to strengthen recycling infrastructure and to help people make more sustainable choices.

In addition to this, they have partnered with designers Wyatt and Jack to combat plastic waste management on holiday. This initiative will see holidaymakers broken and discarded inflatables, lilos and children’s swimming armbands turned into bags and holiday accessories that can be reused.

Alice Macandrew, Group Corporate Affairs Director at Thomas Cook, said: “I think we can all now agree that there is far too much waste in our seas and oceans. Significantly for the travel industry, the amount of plastic litter going into the Mediterranean increases by 40 per cent during the summer months, demonstrating a direct link between our industry and plastic pollution.”

This news follows the European Parliament approving a ban on single-use plastics set to be put in place from 2021.

Photograph: Thomas Cook