Constant improvements

Many years ago we found out that some of our paper products contained fibres of tropical hard wood. That wasn't in line with our standards. After a full investigation, we improved our internal procedures to make sure this couldn't happen again.

We don't use illegally logged walnut wood
Five years ago our forestry experts detected illegal walnut logging in China. So, we stopped using this type of wood in the manufacturing of our products. 

Why sustainable cotton is important

Cotton is one of our most important raw materials. It's found in many IKEA products such as sofas, cushions, bed sheets and mattresses. Although we love working with cotton, we're uncomfortable with the fact that its conventional cultivation is often harmful to the environment and the people grow it.

Conventional cotton farming uses large amounts of chemicals and water. These practices often lead to important health risks for farmers, soil erosion and requires huge amounts of water. Its cost is greater and, as large part of the cotton is grown on small farms in developing countries, farmers struggle to make a profit.

Therefore, we've decided to find a way to tackle these challenges and improve the cotton industry

 

Taking steps to transform the cotton industry

Over a decade ago, IKEA took the first steps to transform cotton production. Along with WWF and other institutions, we designed the Better Cotton Initiative (BCI), with which we aim to make global cotton production better for the people involved, for the environment it grows in and for the future of the sector.

Since 2005, we've been working with WWF to make cotton farming more sustainable. Our work started with 500 farmers from Pakistan. At first, they were reluctant about the idea of changing their cultivation techniques. But after a year, the results where so significant that the majority of them joined our projects in India and Pakistan.

Through the courses taught in the schools about the land, together with our partner's collaboration, around 110 000 farmers have learned more sustainable farming methods. This initiative has enabled this farmers to cut costs, increase their profits and improve their working conditions. As a result, they can provide a better quality of life for their families and even afford schooling for their children.

One step further

We're proud of having reached the 100% of our objectives, but we won't stop there. At IKEA we've committed ourselves to improve the entire cotton industry. Today, 72% of the cotton we use is from Better Cotton and 20% is recycled cotton. Our vision is that more sustainable cotton becomes a mainstream raw material – accessible and affordable to the people that participate in our business.

Working together to save water and energy in India.

For some factories in south India, the only way to obtain enough water is by transporting it 50km. Obsolete machinery and polluted water supply often make production less water and energy efficient. Jansons, a textiles supplier based in Erode, south India, was inspired by IKEA People & Planet Positive strategy and started collaborating in a project to tackle the problem. Measures taken included a wastewater recycling system for printing, a new dyeing process that uses less water and ensures that motors only run when needed.

"Our manufacturing process is in an area of water and energy scarcity, which was a nightmare for us”, says Mr Thirukumar, Managing Director of Jansons Industries. “With IKEA’s support, we saw the difference the project was making and this motivated us to look for more opportunities. With the support of our employees, so far we've saved over 285 Mwh of energy and 69 million litres of water."

Thinking ahead: how to save water for the future

Over 23 million people in Bangladesh don’t have safe drinking water.

”I don’t want my children and grandchildren to be part of that statistic. I want to make sure my company doesn't do anything that leaves trouble for future generations,”says Shah S Alam, managing director of Unilliance, an IKEA textiles supplier in Bangladesh. He's played a very important role in the water projects IKEA has initiated at the company, and he's pushing Unilliance to take part in even more ambitious projects to save water.

“When we started working with IKEA, we already had an effluent treatment plant to remove pollutants from our wastewater before it returns to the environment. But IKEA suggested us to think of ways to reduce and reuse this wastewater.

For example, after some simple changes we know how to use our wastewater to cool down our machinery. This saves us around 100m3 of water each day, enough to fill 15 Olympic pools a year!”

“In 5 to 10 years the laws in Bangladesh will change – everyone will have to reuse their wastewater. Working with IKEA has placed us at the head of the group, and our customers are already noticing the difference,” he says.