Published 26 October 2021 • Inter IKEA newsroom
Study reveals high costs and lack of support are barriers towards healthy and sustainable living
The newly released GlobeScan research shows that people around the world have a strong desire to live healthier and more sustainable, but the majority have not made major changes. Almost half believe it’s too expensive. These insights confirm that IKEA has an important role to play.
Between June and July 2021, more than 30,000 people in 31 markets were surveyed about their attitudes, opinions, and behaviors linked to more sustainable and healthier lifestyles. The survey was designed by GlobeScan together with Inter IKEA Group and a range of other organizations. (Click here to read the full report.)
The study finds that more than one-third of the respondents say that they are greatly affected by climate change and air pollution today, and people are highly motivated to live healthier and more sustainable. 60% of people have a great deal of desire to change their lifestyle to be healthier, and 46% to be more environmentally friendly. However, much smaller proportions (28% and 22% respectively) say they have made major changes in each area.
People of all generations and in all countries call for more support from governments and businesses and claim that the best ways for companies to enable them to afford healthier and more sustainable products are to make them long-lasting and to offer less expensive versions. A key finding is that 46% of people perceive high cost as a barrier to living a healthier and more sustainable life, and 48% say that the biggest barrier to buying healthy and sustainable food is that they can’t afford it.
“At IKEA, we believe that healthy and sustainable choices can’t be a luxury for the few. We aim to make them affordable for all,” says Lena Pripp-Kovac, Chief Sustainability Manager at Inter IKEA Group. “That’s why we are transforming into a circular business, constantly working to lower the environmental impact of our products and looking for new innovative solutions that enable people to reduce their environmental impact at home.”
Examples of IKEA solutions to inspire and enable sustainable living:
- Announced the new IKEA food commitment, that by 2025, 50% of main meals offered in the restaurants will be plant-based and 80% will be non-red meat, and 80% of all packaged food offered will be plant-based - Introduced the VÄRLDSKLOK plant mince, made from pea protein, and can be easily shaped and prepared plant-based dishes at home - Developing affordable and efficient solutions to enable people to purify the indoor air, such as the FÖRNUFTIG and STARKVINK air purifiers. - Partnering with Flow Loop to develop a water recycling shower solution to inspire and enable people to be more water efficient - Joined the 50L Home Coalition with the vision of making 50 litres of daily water use per person an aspiration for all - Introduced the SOLHETTA LED light bulb to enable more efficient energy usage with more affordable prices. Compared to the current IKEA light bulb range LEDARE and RYET, SOLHETTA is on average 35% more efficient in energy - Openly shared the methodology and insights of circular product design through an online interactive tool to inspire and enable designers and accelerate the movement towards a circular economy.