Ahead of World Ocean Day (8 June), Novotel proudly marks the first anniversary of its transformative three-year partnership with the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF).
Reaffirming its commitment to protecting the wellbeing and longevity of the ocean with the launch of two new food policies: Novotel’s Sustainable Seafood Principles in partnership with WWF France and the launch of a pioneering global Plant-Forward food ambition across 600 hotels.
DELICIOUS, HEALTHIER, MORE SUSTAINABLE FOOD
The new Sustainable Seafood Principles were created in partnership with WWF and led by the fisheries experts at WWF France. The new guidelines, launched globally across Novotel’s 600 hotels, include banning of 350 species of endangered seafood species, and promoting responsible fishing by 2027, serving only MSC-certified wild-caught species or responsibly sourced local fish, and use ASC- or organic-certified farmed seafood for salmon and shrimp, fostering supplier collaboration where needed. WWF France has created Sustainable Seafood Training, a comprehensive global training programme for Novotel chefs, food and procurement teams, and is working alongside Novotel and Accor to improve traceability.
Furthermore, Novotel has pioneered a Plant-Forward1 ambition, targeting all its 600 hotels to have a minimum of 25% plant-based menus by 2026. Today 39% of hotels dedicate at least 25% of their menus to plant-forward options. Novotel is committed to offering market leading, tasty, sustainable, and Plant-Forward philosophy at scale, guided by a leading culinary institute.
EDUCATION & AWARENESS FOR THE NEXT GENERATION
Novotel welcomes more than two million family stays a year and this summer families at Novotel will experience two new edutainment games designed by WWF France and Novotel to inspire and empower children to be ambassadors for the ocean. “Guardians of the Mediterranean” is an interactive card and digital game inspired by the WWF Blue Panda boat, created to educate families about ocean conservation in a fun, engaging way. “Sea Turtle” is a lively digital quiz that helps children learn about the threats faced during turtle migration, including ghost gear, plastic and pollution.
A YEAR OF PROGRESS: STRENGTHENING NOVOTEL’S COMMITMENT TO THE OCEANS
Since its launch in June 2024, Novotel has made significant strides to deliver upon its ocean preservation and sustainable impact plan:
1/ REDUCE IMPACT
Novotel’s commitment to reducing its impact aligns with Accor’s industry-leading mission towards positive hospitality, including:
- Phasing out single-use plastics across Novotel hotel operations
- Installing large-format and refillable dispensers in hotels
- Minimizing food waste through innovative solutions and guest engagement
- Launched microplastic filter pilots in two Novotel hotels2 in France to reduce impact from hotel laundry
2/ DELICIOUS, HEALTHIER & MORE SUSTAINABLE FOOD CHOICES
In addition to the new Plant-Forward ambition and Sustainable Seafood Principles, Novotel has implemented significant actions:
- A globally managed Fishery Improvement Project (FIP) was launched in Q1 2025 in collaboration with WWF, including support of the Indian Squid FIP in Kerala, India
- Launched a partnership with Seafood Souq to ensure all seafood suppliers and products are onboarded to SFS Trace and meet required traceability standards, including an 18-hotel pilot in the Middle East3.
- A Seafood Taskforce procurement project has been launched in Europe in collaboration with WWF France, working directly with five suppliers to improve traceability as part of the brand’s commitment to support WWF’s ambition for sector-wide change throughout the supply chain.
3/ ENHANCE EDUCATION & OCEAN AWARENESS
Novotel is committed to raising awareness of the importance of the ocean to modern life, inspiring hotel teams, guests and communities to positively contribute to a more balanced life with the ocean.
- New global Ocean Awareness Training for all Novotel teams in all 600 hotels, enhancing their knowledge and inspiring their action and commitment. The training has been developed in partnership with AXA Climate.
- New WWF Sustainable Seafood Training: for all chef, F&B and procurement teams, including the impact of overfishing, sustainable seafood sourcing and best-in-class sustainability practices in restaurants.
- Edutainment in-hotel events, programming and games to inspire positive action amongst the Novotel community.
4/ CONTRIBUTE TO RESEARCH & INNOVATION
Novotel is supporting essential WWF France conservation projects around the world, investing to support ocean impact, research and action through critical projects.
1/ The protection of Posidonia in the Mediterranean
- Where: Europe
- Why: Per hectare, the Posidonia meadow sequesters five to seven times more carbon than the tropical forest
- Status: Action plans underway in 9 coastal cities; 8 mooring fields in project; and 73 buoy conversions completed in 2024 and 41 planned in 2025.
2/ The identification and removal of “ghost gear”
- Where: Mediterranean Sea
- Why: Lost, abandoned and otherwise discarded fishing gear are a major threat to marine life
- Status: Over 1,000 hectares prospected in Bonifacio; several4 nets identified; pilot retrieval with underwater robots scheduled for 2025–2026; new prospection missions in Calanques and Ajaccio planned.
3/ Supporting the WWF France’s Blue Panda boat
- Where: Europe – France, Greece, Türkiye, Italy and Croatia
- Why: The Blue Panda sails across the Mediterranean conducting missions to develop science-based solutions and recommendations to protect Mediterranean marine life, to raise public awareness, and leading lobbying missions with countries and communities.
- Status: 2024 campaign completed across France, Greece, Turkey, Italy and Croatia; educational visits reached 550+ children in France; Cap Cétacés anti-collision system tested; ghost gear prospection and Marine Protection Areas studies conducted; Blue Panda to be in Nice 8–14 June for UNOC with stakeholder events.
4/ Tracking and tracing marine turtles
- Where: Global, with a specific focus on Asia-Pacific
- Why: Six of seven species of marine turtles remained threatened by harvesting, illegal trade, being caught by commercial fisheries and the loss of nesting beaches. Mapping nesting beaches, migratory corridors and foraging grounds for critical turtle populations.
- Status: ‘Blue Corridors’ initiative launched October 2024; over 12,600 turtles tracked globally; data gathering and connectivity analysis ongoing in 2025; update to be published by WWF at UNOC 2025.
5/ Protecting the sea turtles of the Western Atlantic
- Where: Guiana Shield
- Why: Mobilising civic society and fighting illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing will help protect leatherback turtles breeding on coastal areas of the Guianas, and green and olive ridley turtles from Brazil to Venezuela.
- Status: Youth ambassador programme launched; regional delegation to attend UNOC in June 2025; field projects including eco-guide training, citizen science, and advocacy actions ongoing through 2025-2026.
“The ocean is our planet’s greatest source of balance – the ‘lungs of the world’,” added Jean-Yves Minet. “It regulates climate, supports livelihoods, and protects ecosystems. But that balance is at risk. To secure a sustainable future, we must rebalance our relationship with the oceans, reducing our impact and ensuring marine health. Our wellbeing is deeply tied to the health of the ocean. Protecting the ocean isn’t just about the environment, it’s about supporting human health and longevity too.”