Melbourne Airport last month announced its commitment to ensuring all front-of-house hospitality venues and lounges are single-use plastic free by the end of 2021.
The airport will put an end to the distribution of traditional plastic items such as single-The majority of the airport’s front-of-house venues are already reducing plastics by switching to sustainable and recyclable options like bamboo. The new commitment will see remaining venues and lounges adopt a plastic-free stance by the end of the year, well ahead of the Victorian Government’s 2023 deadline.
Delaware North, which has operated a wide range of food and beverage services at Melbourne Airport since 1990, is already seeing huge benefits after eliminating single-use plastic straws from its operations in 2018. Through the ‘Last Straw’ campaign, it’s estimated that more than 500,000 plastic straws have been diverted from use and disposal. The company is in the process of eliminating all single-use plastic from its venues within Melbourne Airport and will complete the process by the end of 2021.
Melbourne Airport Chief of Aviation Lorie Argus said the ambition to reduce single-use plastics by the end of the year highlights the airport’s commitment to environmentally friendly practices.
“While the Victorian government has mandated a ban on all single-use plastics by February 2023, Melbourne Airport will stop the purchase and distribution of single-use plastics across our front-of-house venues and lounges at the end of the year as part of our continuous improvement program around waste management,” Argus said.
“We know pollution and waste management is a major concern for travelers, so we’re proud to announce this significant step as part of our traveler experience work stream. We’re looking forward to working with our tenants to find sustainable, recyclable alternatives to single-use plastic.”
PHOTO CAPTION (above): Melbourne Airport, where Delaware North operates Stomping Ground Brewing (pictured at left), has pledged to eliminate single-use plastic straws from its operations in 2021.
PHOTO CAPTION (below): Delaware North’s Last Straw campaign, which launched in 2018, helped in diverting the use of an estimated 500,000 plastic straws at Melbourne Airport.