"We are honoured to be one of the charter’s first signatories and we applaud the UK Chamber of Shipping in launching its initiative.The pledge goes beyond the UK Government’s commitment to ban single plastic items which we hope will encourage more organisations to do more to combat what is of real global concern," stated Linden Coppell, Director of Sustainability, MSC Cruises.

The cruise line said that 97 million plastic items were removed in 2019 after almost 40,000 single-use plastic items were found in its hotel operations, stores, restaurants and kitchens.

According to MSC, nearly 20 million plastic straws were replaced with 9 million compostable straws in the year, plastic coverings were eliminated for more than 10,000 sunbeds, and 12 tons of plastic packaging for dishwater detergents were replaced with eco-friendly alternatives.

Maritime Business World