Emperors Palace gives straws a skip in effort to help save the environment | The Planner

Emperors Palace Hotel, Casino, Convention and Entertainment Resort has launched Straws Suck, a campaign dedicated to doing less harm to the environment by scrapping the use of plastic straws at Aurelia’s and Rosetta’s restaurant. The resort will, however, offer customers a BioStraw – a 100% biodegradable straw made from mielie cobs and other plants – upon request, which requires far less energy and effort to recycle than its plastic counterpart.

The decision to do away with straws is part of the resort’s ongoing commitment to not only reducing its carbon footprint as much as possible, but introducing innovative green initiatives that make a positive, noticeable impact.

“Single-use plastic straws are just one of the many non-recyclable items that end up polluting the ocean and the environment at large,” says Food and Beverage Manager, Tiaan Schultz. “This has a direct impact on marine life in particular, with millions of marine animals killed every year as a result of plastic debris in the ocean.”

“We realised that simply doing away with straws at two of our most popular restaurants is a huge step in the right direction, and we challenge more businesses to take up the challenge and do away with straws too. We would also like to thank our guests in advance for supporting The Palace of Dreams in its efforts to go green and do its part to conserve the environment,” he says.