Ikea invested more than 100 million in sustainability in 2018

The goal for 2020 is that 100% of the company's material be sent to recycling, similar to what happens with the card.

Energy efficiency: a priority
The Swedish company measures almost watt and milliliter what it spends, looking annually to find new ways to make operations more efficient.
This is the case of using LED bulbs that consume 25% less electricity, taps that save almost 50% water than traditional soaps or hand dryers in the toilet that do not run for more than 10 consecutive seconds. In fact, almost all the electricity generated by the 11,300 national solar panels is consumed directly in the stores, which allows to reduce light costs by 25% every year.

"We hate waste, because waste is not only money that we throw away, that we are not optimizing, what it is like to be using resources of the planet that are finite," says Cláudia Domingues, Director of Communication and Sustainability, in an interview with Jornal Económico (JE).

Sustained (and sustainable) investment
In the fiscal year 2018, Ikea Portugal invested more than 100 million euros in sustainability, an amount that includes energy efficiency projects and the purchase of the Pisco Wind Farm, which produces renewable energy capable of supplying about 30 brands.

According to this retailer's study, by 2016 about 20% of citizens put climate change as one of their daily concerns, and in 2018 there was a 10 percentage point increase in that percentage.
"The numbers tell us that people are more 'alert', more interested and making more informed decisions.
The study also found that 88% of the sample liked to "do more" for the environment. "We saw different motivations for this not to happen, one of which would not be willing to pay more. For us it's almost counter-intuitive. Sustainable products do not have to be necessarily more expensive”, explains Cláudia Domingues.

Recycling: the future is now
Between September 2017 and August 2018, the five stores in the country produced 4 thousand tons of cardboard, which was subsequently collected and recycled in order to produce a new carton for packaging at the Ikea Industry units, in Paços de Ferreira. There, the goal is more ambitious: until next year the company wants 100% of the material to be sent for recycling.

Source: Jornal Económico