Grand Hyatt Jakarta waves plastic straws goodbye

The movement to eliminate single-use plastic products such as straws, stirrers, drink picks and bags has grown wider across the globe. In Jakarta, we have started seeing paper straws instead of their plastic counterparts served with our drinks.

Grand Hyatt Jakarta has joined the movement starting early July. According to a statement released by the hotel, it is already moving away from using take-away meal boxes and cutlery, cups and cup lids as well as other products mentioned earlier.

Plastic straws, for example, have been replaced with premium quality paper straws that are highly durable but eco-friendly as they are chemical free, 100 percent compostable and FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) certified, meaning the paper is sourced from sustainably managed forests.

When it comes to plastic bags, the hotel is still in the process of switching to bio-cassava bags created from industrial-grade cassava starch and other natural ingredients. Meanwhile, the new eco-friendly choice for take-away containers are those made of bagasse, the dry pulpy residue left after the extraction of juice from sugar cane.

Peter Stettler, general manager of Grand Hyatt Jakarta and area vice president for Indonesia, said in the statement that at the hotel alone, they used to issue over 7,000 plastic straws to guests every month.

Read also: Starbucks swears off single-use plastic straws for 2020 deadline

“By switching to paper straws, we will stop over 90,000 plastic straws entering landfill sites or making their way into the ocean each year,” Peter was quoted as saying.

He went on to say that the hotel was working closely with eco-friendly product manufacturers, choosing those that were carefully selected and sourced from high quality sustainable materials made in Indonesia.

This movement is also taking place in the culinary department of the hotel. The kitchen, for example, now serves homemade yogurt in single-serve glass jars at breakfast, and butter is served on a ceramic butter dish instead of individual plastic packets. It also uses 100 percent biodegradable SOILON teabags, the filter, string and label of which are derived from plant-based materials.

Guests of Grand Hyatt Jakarta can now be sure that environmental harm is minimized following the initiative. (mut)