About IKEA

+ IKEA Concept and history

− People and the environment

+ A more sustainable life at home

Product life cycle

The Never Ending List

The Never Ending Forest

+ IKEA Social Initiative

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Forestry and Wood

Cotton

IWAY, Our Code of Conduct

+ Working conditions

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Cotton

Cotton is one of the most important raw materials for IKEA, and we work actively to promote better cotton growing methods. IKEA wants the cotton used in IKEA products to be produced in a sustainable manner, taking in to consideration both people and the environment.

Conventional cotton growing and processing consumes large amounts of water and chemicals. IKEA product developers are actively involved in developing better cotton cultivation and production practices, to increase the volume of cotton produced in an environmentally friendly way.

IKEA and WWF joint cotton projects

IKEA product developers and WWF cooperate on a project in India and Pakistan to develop better cotton farming practices. About 2,000 farmers in Pakistan and 500 in India are being trained in Farmer Field Schools where they learn how to reduce the amount of water and chemicals they use. This has a positive impact on the environment and also increases the farmers’ income from their harvest, providing an example for thousands of farmers in the region.

Child rights programmes in cotton and cotton seed farming

IKEA Social Initiative supports a UNICEF project working to eliminate child labour in the cotton-seed-producing areas of India.

Better Cotton Initiative

IKEA is a founding member of the Better Cotton Initiative (BCI). BCI aims to promote measurable improvements in the key environmental and social impacts of cotton cultivation worldwide to make it more sustainable. Leading participants are international companies, NGOs and the United Nations Environment Programme.