Buy local first

Purchasing local products and services can help enhance customer experience, support local communities, relations and economies and in some cases provide your business with better quality and a better deal overall. Even if a central purchasing policy is in operation for some goods, it may be possible to buy services from local providers. Anything from laundry services, pool maintenance, transport provision or entertainment can be supplied by local businesses.

Energy & water efficient

When new electrical equipment is purchased, make sure goods which are more energy efficient prioritized. For example, EU rated A to G, US Energy star or equivalent low energy rated. Equally when new taps, showers, toilets or urinals are purchased, prioritize the more water efficient choices, which are usually identified as low flow, EU water label (green banded), US Water sense or equivalent.

Involve suppliers

Inform your suppliers and sub-contractors on the ways you are reducing and managing your impact on the environment, being a responsible employer and are committed to the well-being of the wider community. An easy way to do this is to share a copy of your sustainability or environmental policy. By engaging with them, you are increasing awareness of an important topic, and encouraging your suppliers and sub-contractors to play their part too.

Food for thought

As a rule of thumb, you should look for the closest food supply you can get, and then buy other manufactured (or grown) products or services that are located within close proximity to your property. Whilst you might not be able to buy all food locally, it’s often possible to source some fresh fruit and seasonal vegetables locally, and sometimes meat or fish, or local wines and olive oils. Find out what local producers are located within close proximity to your property and see if you can support them if the price and quality is right. Please take a look at the Sustainable Food Communication Manual, which is especially designed to help hotels to move towards a sustainable food policy.

Souvenirs

Make sure that the property and its suppliers do not sell any protected species as souvenirs, or protected historical and archaeological artefacts such as old coins, masonry from historic sites or fossils. As this is a highly visible topic which could potentially damage your reputation, we recommend taking a look at the Souvenir guide for more information and ideas.

Paper and timber

Purchase paper or card which has recycled content or is made from a sustainably managed forest. Sustainable wood products are normally labelled by the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification schemes (PEFC) or EU eco-label. This also applies to other forest products such as timber or furniture.

Cosmetics

For cosmetics, (from hand soap to sunscreen) micro-plastics or micro-beads are intentionally added plastic particles which are smaller than 5mm. These particles are sometimes used for exfoliating, as an emulsifying agent, filler or light reflectors (including in glitters) but they are particularly damaging to marine environments and easily enter food chains. As a result, a micro-plastic ban in wash-off cosmetics has been implemented by a growing number of nations including the UK and USA.

In 2020 the EU  began work on wider ranging micro-plastics legislation to phase out their use in detergents, paints, polish and coatings as well as cosmetics.  We recommend checking to see if the micro-plastics are already banned in the country where you operate and ask your supplier to confirm the products you purchase are free from Microplastics.

Fair trade

As a starting point, tea, coffee, sugar and cocoa products that are sustainable and fair trade certified are now widely available, often with little or no price premium. Widely recognised certifications for these products include, Fair Trade international, Rainforest Alliance, UTZ, Bon surco, Ethical Tea Partnership membership and Fair for Life.

Packaging

You can cut packaging waste and cost considerably through the bulk purchase of products. Providing refillable containers for wash products in guest and staff areas is a good place to start, and reduces the use of single-use plastic containers. However, it is important to make sure that dispensers are regularly monitored and topped up. Where dispensers are used in guest rooms, make sure your housekeeping staff have sufficient time to check and top-up regularly.

Tell your guests about it

While you are aiming to source your products as responsible as possible we also recommend to tell your guests about it. For example, about the organic breakfast  you provide, Fairtrade coffee or tea, and the FSC certified wooden floors. It all stands for quality, something that gives your guests a positive view of your hotel.