Less plastic above the clouds

The TUI Group has saved more than 26 million single use plastic articles since 2018. The TUI airlines support the TUI Group’s 2025 target of saving 250 million disposable plastic articles.

Holidaymakers flying with a TUI airline will see less plastic on board. The leading travel group has announced that more than 26 million disposable plastic items have been saved since 2018. 3.7 million disposable plastic items have been saved by reducing the number of plastic cutlery sets on board. In addition, the length of the headphone cords was shortened and the plastic packaging of the issued blankets was replaced by a paper sleeve. The airlines also no longer use plastic bags for in-flight purchases.

The TUI airlines continue to be innovative. They have redesigned the Activity Kits given to children for entertainment on long-haul flights. Instead of plastic packaging, the Activity Kits are now offered in more environmentally friendly paper packaging to reduce plastic waste.

In addition, the airline has also developed a new, sustainable Amenity Kit that is given out in reusable packaging from recycled PET plastic bottles. Not only will recycled plastic be used for the kits, but an additional one million disposable plastic items will also be saved from the kits. FSC-certified paper is used where packaging is still required for hygiene reasons. This product is a prime example of closer cooperation with all suppliers to minimise packaging and is also used in many other products.

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All this progress was achieved in the context of the ongoing commitment of all TUI Group airlines to saving 40 million disposable plastic articles by 2020. This contributes to TUI’s overall target of saving 250 million disposable plastic articles by 2020. The measures also include cutting out 112 million disposable plastic articles in hotels, the introduction of the “Plastic Reduction Guidelines” for hotels and the ambitious “Wasteless” plastic reduction programme launched by TUI Cruises. The initiatives are in line with the TUI Group’s sustainability strategy “Better Holidays, Better World”. This comprises four core areas in which TUI wants to promote sustainable tourism within its own company, along the entire value chain, in the entire industry and at the destinations.

“We are not only happy to have some of the world’s most climate-efficient airlines in our Group, but we will also make our in-flight operations as efficient and sustainable as possible. We are working hard to reduce the use of plastic on board our aircraft and have launched numerous other initiatives to reduce waste and implement sustainable practices. The progress we have made over the past year is impressive and an incentive to explore further innovative ideas that will enable us to achieve much more in the future,” says Jill Nye, Director of Inflight Services at TUI Aviation.

Sustainable bracelets from recycled fishing nets

She adds, “In addition to proactive measures to close the cycle when disposable plastic items are used, we are constantly on the lookout for sustainable products for our in-flight catalogue. In Germany, and from November also in the UK, we are selling “Bracenets” – bracelets made from fishing nets that have been torn loose or deliberately abandoned at sea. These “ghost nets” can float for decades and are a deadly trap for many animals. The nets are salvaged, cleaned and then used to make bracelets. Part of the proceeds goes to the “Healthy Seas Organisation”.