IKEA, the world's largest furniture retailer, has made further progress in its drive to transition entirely to clean energy sources and to create sustainably produced products, according to the results of its new sustainability report.
Recently, it joined a global collective energy switch designed for big firms that promised an electricity tariff made up of 100pc renewables. But its commitment doesn't stop there. Across the world, IKEA now has more wind turbines than it does retail stores, and it is getting close to its goal of total energy independence by 2020. It has 750,000 of its own solar panels and 416 wind turbines that produce up to 75pc of its total energy needs.
Its green strategy is also paying off, as its sales from domestic sustainable products have grown by over 300pc. It now has a line of more than 500 green products that are designed to be affordable whilst supporting sustainable living, such as waste sorting and recycling, renewable energy and energy-efficiency. Within its product lines, 77pc of its wood and 100pc of its cotton are now sourced from sustainable sources. Of its packaging, 98pc is made from recycled or renewable materials.
At the same time, it also managed to prevent a whopping 200,000kg of food being thrown away, which saved the equivalent of over 865 tonnes of C02. This forms part of its strategy to cut food waste by 50pc by 2020.
IKEA also sends no waste to landfill in the UK and offers its customers battery solutions for the home to help drive forward adoption of clean energy on a micro-scale. It has also started to build the most sustainable store to date. It's an impressive list of achievements for the company, and its ambitions are not fulfilled yet.