Hotel giant Marriott has become the latest high profile brand to announce plans to ditch plastic straws and drinks stirrers worldwide.

The hotelier, which has more than 6,500 properties around the world, confirmed late last week that it is set to remove plastic drinks items from its bars and restaurants by the end of the month.

The move is expected to eliminate the use of more than 1 billion plastic straws and around 250 million stirrers each year.

"We are proud to be among the first large U.S. companies to announce that we're eliminating plastic straws in our properties worldwide," said Arne Sorenson, president and chief executive officer of Marriott International. "Removing plastic straws is one of the simplest ways our guests can contribute to plastic reduction when staying with us — something they are increasingly concerned about and are already doing in their own homes."

We are proud to be among the first large U.S. companies to announce that we're eliminating plastic straws in our properties worldwide.

Marriott said it would adopt a policy of providing paper straws on request, with provisions in place where necessary for customers who require a plastic straw for healthcare reasons.

The hotelier also confirmed to BusinessGreen its primary straw supplier in the U.S. manufactures its paper straws from FSC-certified paper, while most stirrers are made from FSC certified wood.

However, it added that its hotels use a number of suppliers, so it cannot guarantee every straw and stirrer will be made using sustainably managed resources.