Prior to the outbreak, the travel sector was facing growing pressure to take action on issues such as plastics and carbon emissions.

Operators, hotels and other supplies have started taking steps to reduce single-use plastic usage such as by introducing refillable water bottles and toiletry dispensers, while a number of airlines have pledged to invest in cleaner, more fuel efficient aircraft.

It followed a rapid upswell in public awareness of the issue, driven by movements such as Extinction Rebellion and climate change activist Greta Thunberg.

However, GlobalData believes the progress made in 2019 “will be brought to a halt” by Covid-19. Analyst Emily Salter said sustainability “was no longer top of retailers’ and consumers’ agendas”.

“Making changes to materials, logistics and production processes to improve the sustainability of products and operations will slow,” said Salter, who predicts suppliers may be unwilling to make changes to products owing to the cost of developing and incorporating new materials into production processes.

Salter added that although sustainability will “slowly become more important again once the spread of Covid-19 has ceased”, increased awareness of cleanliness and hygiene was likely to remain at the forefront of consumers’ minds – “and will continue to hinder the growth of sustainability initiatives”.