The removal of the plastic bottles is part of Norwegian Cruise Line's sustainability commitments, including the reduction of waste going to landfill
Founded in 1966, the Florida-based Norwegian Cruise Line is the third-largest company of its kind in the world (Credit: Pixabay)
Global cruise company Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL) will be the first in its industry to ditch plastic water bottles when it swaps to paper-based cartons from JUST Water — the firm founded by Hollywood star Will Smith’s son, Jaden.
The move, slated for completion in 2020, will replace more than six million single-use plastic bottles it currently uses each year.
Swapping single-use bottles for JUST Water’s sustainable cartons is part of the company’s Sail & Sustain Environment commitment to cut the amount of waste it sends to landfill and also reduce its CO2 emissions.
Part of this commitment saw the firm remove single-use plastic straws from its cruise liners in 2018.
The process of eliminating plastic bottles will begin with the launch of its new Norwegian Encore cruiser in November 2019, with the entire fleet becoming free of single-use bottles in 2020.
NCL president and chief executive officer Andy Stuart said: “We are a company in the business of creating memorable experiences for our guests.
“It is imperative that we take meaningful steps to preserve our oceans and the destinations we visit.
“Partnering with JUST is one of my proudest moments as the head of our pioneering brand.
“This latest effort — the elimination of single-use plastic bottles across our fleet — is just the latest environmentally responsible action we are taking to reduce our footprint and encourage others to protect our natural resources.
“While we are aware that this is just the beginning of what we and others need to do to be good stewards of our environment, we are committed to our Sail & Sustain initiatives and will continue to innovate for the overall benefit of the planet and its future.”
What is JUST Goods?
The company supplying the new water bottles is JUST Goods Inc, which manufacturer of JUST Water brand of drinks.
Founded in 2015 by the Jaden Smith, with the aim of offering an alternative to plastic water bottles, the bottles are made from 82% renewable resources — predominantly paper sourced from the Forest Stewardship Council.
Launched in the UK in 2018, it also uses material sourced from sugarcane to develop its bottle lids.
JUST Goods CEO Ira Laufer said: “It’s critical that businesses take a leading role in efforts to lighten the impact we have on our planet.
“We created JUST to do just that — to be a better option in a category that has created a lot of the damage and continues to do so.
“The JUST team couldn’t be happier to now share this goal with our partner, NCL.
“We’re deeply appreciative of Norwegian’s commitment that’s so similar to ours — the Company is pushing the boundaries of what’s always been done because it knows we all need to do better.
“We’re thrilled to be taking steps in the right direction alongside NCL.”