IHG to switch to bulk-size bathroom amenities by end of 2021

IHG plans to transition its entire hotel portfolio of nearly 843,000 rooms to bulk-size bathroom amenities by the end of 2021. The company estimated its hotels currently use an average of 200 million bathroom miniatures every year.

CEO Keith Barr said a third of the company’s portfolio already is adopting the change. IHG’s Voco Hotels, Even Hotels and Avid Hotels brands have all offered bulk-size amenities since their launch. Six Senses Hotels Resorts Spas currently offers bathroom products in refillable dispensers. Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants is moving to larger-size amenities. More than 1,000 Holiday Inn Express hotels in the Americas have been implementing the change, along with numerous Staybridge Suites and Candlewood Suites properties in the region.

“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,” Barr said in a statement. “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.”

IHG also is working on removing single-use plastic straws from all its hotels by the end of the year. It estimates the initiative, first announced in October 2018, will remove an average of 50 million straws from its hotels per year.