Social Responsibility Projects

Trace the roots of the coffee beans you enjoy

The coffee sold and served at IKEA is UTZ certified. In other words, with the code on the package you can trace the coffee bean you have, right to the farm it was grown at!

UTZ certificates are issued by an independent non-profit foundation which sets the social and environmental standards for sustainable coffee production and distribution.

While sipping your IKEA coffee, visit the site utzcertified.org/IKEA and discover the farm where the beans were grown!

The only thing you will not see here is trash.

Perhaps it has a scratch on the side or perhaps it was used as a display product at the store. Maybe someone bought it but promptly returned it, deciding it was not a good match for her home. Doesn’t matter. All these products are in good shape, and they don’t deserve to be thrown away!

Take a chance.

You can get much more affordable prices when shopping at the Bargain Corner, and you can give IKEA furniture a second chance for a happy life. Each year, Bargain Corners at IKEA stores all around the world save millions of kilos of materials from ending up in the trash, while saving tens of thousands of people some cash.

We are aware of our responsibility to nature, while using wood in our products.

The concept of IKEA requires awareness of the origin of every piece of wood used in our products. Our long term objective is to supply all wood used in IKEA products, from forests with management certification. In order to achieve this objective, we work with the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) and Forest Stewardship Council (FSC). Where no forest stewardship certificate is available, we do not usewood from Intact Forest Landscapes (INF) or other geographically delineated High Conservation Value Forests (HCVF). Furthermore, our own forestry specialists are involved in the production process and share data with suppliers and track the timbers to the initial source onwards.

As of 2011, the ratio of Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certified wood in the IKEA product range grew to 15.8%. This means that our Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certified wood consumption rose to a total of 2.2 billion cubic meters. That’s 55,000 full truck loads!

Huge sofas take up just a little truck space.

IKEA sofas are the products which take the most space, and which pose a challenge in terms of efficient and environment-friendly handling. Most of the sofas are packaged, delivered and stored in disassembled form. This makes it possible to store many sofas in a limited space, and cut back on delivery costs. And of course, we make sure you benefit directly from each of our savings!

Cotton is now grown more productively.

Cotton used in the majority of our products is now grown in a more sustainable manner. The use of water, fertiliser, and pesticides has been curbed. The benefits don’t stop there, however; fabrics are now woven with 15% less cotton, yet with no difference in terms of look and feel compared to the cottons we are used to!

LED glows... glows... glows...

LED lights last for 25.000 hours where as conventional incandescent lamps last only 1.000 hours. We've been serious when we said we believed in LED. The light quality of LED is at least the same as incandescent lamps even using 85% less energy. This means, by using LED lights you will not only pay less on electricity, you will also save more on resources. The exciting part is to know that the new and tiny lighting designs will be possible thanks to tiny LEDs.

Save water every time you turn on the tap.

All IKEA bathroom taps are equipped with Pressure Compensating Aerators (PCA) reducing water consumption by 30%.

We took out the lead.

We are proud to announce that IKEA is among the first firms worldwide to sell lead-free mirrors! Plus, lead-free mirrors actually provide a clearer reflection.

Yet another organic product!

IKEA is well aware of the importance of organic agriculture and organic products. Many Swedish Food Market series products sold at the Swedish Food Market are organic. We sell 20 organic foods worldwide.

A soft, natural, and renewable fibre.

IKEA is committed to reducing the cotton consumption. That is why we have begun using lyocell in certain products. Lyocell is a cellulose based renewable material, produced out of wood fibres at wood farms.(These farms consume less water compared to cotton farms.)

No PVC!

We know you’ll be happy to hear that the use of PVC (Polyvinyl Chloride) in IKEA products has been prohibited since the early 90s. For now, the sole exception is electrical cables, because we have yet to find a suitable replacement.

IKEA Restaurants.

Each year many people from all around the world enjoy IKEA restaurants and food. We work with the international aid agency Compassion in World Farming (CIWF) to improve animal welfare standards at the farms supplying food to IKEA. CIWF works with the largest food producers in Europe and supports endeavours to achieve concrete improvements in farm animals’ welfare.

Sustainable salmon farming.

Salmon IKEA participates in the Salmon Dialogue, a multi-stakeholder dialogue, initiated by WWF. The dialogue is developing a standard for sustainable salmon farming.

Salmon Dialogs led to the development of certain principles and criteria for responsible salmon growing from an environmental, social and economic perspective. The standards were set up to provide solutions to a few crucial negative effects of salmon growing operations.

When completed, these standards will be observed by all the salmon suppliers we work with.

Close the lid to cook pasta faster.

When boiling water for pasta, if the lid is closed, the water boils 75% faster, as no heat is wasted.This means substantial energy savings. Most IKEA cooking pots and saucepans are sold with lids. In case you need an extra lid, we have STABIL glass lids to prevent the loss of heat when checking the pot to see if the dish is cooked.

Summer: thin curtains; Winter: thick and dark curtains

White reflects the light. That is why it is better to use light curtains and to keep them shut to block the heat out on sunny days. In the winter, thick fabrics help with heat-insulation, while dark colors absorb sunlight, helping you keep the room warm, and cut back on heating costs. To use even less energy, use our roller blinds which provide heat-insulation.

Each degree on the thermostat of your heating system reduces your heating bill by 3-5%, as well as your carbon emissions in the atmosphere.

The easiest way to wash vegetables. And even less water.

Instead of using liters and liters of water, grab a large pot, put the vegetables in, and fill the pot with cold water. (Cold water refreshes vegetables.) Give the pot a little shake and rub at the root vegetables, such as carrots and potatoes. Then leave them in the water. After a while, you’ll see that the dirt and the mud have settled in the bottom, while the vegetables are now sparkling clean. By always using this method to wash salad vegetables, you can save lots of water. Then, use the water for flowers.

Keep your freezer full to reduce your electricity bill.

When the deep freeze is filled to the brim, the items inside keep each other cold. So the refrigerator doesn’t have to work so hard.

The less energy you consume, the more cash you can save, while carbon emissions also fall. So when you cook larger dishes, such as pasta sauce or paprika paste, divide them into individual servings and put them in the freezer in small containers. Not only will you have ready-made meals, but you can save electricity, time, and cash by thawing them in the fridge and reheating them in the microwave.

Recycling should be as simple as using a single trash can!

When you have a dedicated container to put the empty bottles in, sorting out the trash is a no-brainer. All you have to do is to set up a simple trash sorting system in your kitchen. If you want, you can put the recycling container in another room. For instance, a covered balcony would be a good place to store cans and glass, while the study is the best candidate for hosting paper boxes.