(Photo Credit: William Murphy, Flickr Creative Commons)Ikea has committed to lower greenhouse gas emissions from production 80% in absolute terms by 2030 compared to the furniture-maker’s 2016 levels, Reuters reported. The pledge is part of the company’s broader sustainability strategy.
Two years ago, Ikea’s direct suppliers and owned factories emitted 3.4 million metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent, Anna Ringstrom reported in Reuters. The company produces about 10% of its product range and sources the rest from suppliers, she added.
Recently Ikea launched a global initiative to fight air pollution. Starting in India, the company plans to turn a rice harvesting residue called rice straw into a renewable source for Ikea products. Rice straw is frequently burned for fuel and contributes to air pollution, the company says.
Over the summer, Ikea set several goals that were approved by the Science Based Targets initiative:
Ikea also announced a range of sustainability commitments in June for its updated People and Planet Positive strategy. They included reducing the total Ikea climate footprint by an average of 70% per product, designing all Ikea products with circular principles, and achieving zero emissions home deliveries by 2025.
“Change will only be possible if we collaborate with others and nurture entrepreneurship,” Inter IKEA Group CEO Torbjörn Lööf said at the time. “We are committed to taking the lead working together with everyone — from raw material suppliers all the way to our customers and partners.”
Lööf and Ikea sustainability chief Lena Pripp-Kovac told Reuters that improving efficiency across production and shifting to renewable energy for making certain materials will help the company reach its new GHG reduction target. Their announcement comes as the COP 24 climate change conference begins in Katowice, Poland.
