Virgin Australia removes straws from its aircraft and lounges

Virgin Australia has announced plastic straws and stirrers are going the way of cigarettes on its planes, soon to be a distant memory. 

All single-use plastic utensils will also be removed from the airline's lounges.

The move will see more than 260,000 plastic straws and 7.5 million plastic stirrers removed the Virgin's operations.

They will be replaced with paper straws and bamboo stirrers. 

Virgin Australia's sustainability manager, Rob Wood, says the change is part of a wider company strategy.

"As an airline, we have a responsibility to contribute to sustainable initiatives that will benefit the environment and this is an important step in the right direction."

The new paper and bamboo alternatives are being used in Virgin Australia flights and lounges from Monday.

Newshub.