Ikea announced this week that it will invest $220 million in efforts to transform its business model into one that is more "climate positive." The investments include renewable energy.
According to CNBC, the Inter Ikea Group said the investments will be focused on efforts to improve "reforestation and responsible forest management." The company added that it will seek possibilities in integrating renewable energy into its existing supply chain.
CEO Torbjörn Lööf said in a statement on Thursday that the European home furniture leader has an ambition of reducing the world's overall greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 while also attaining prior goals set by the company.
As with other companies aiming to transition to a more environment-friendly supply chain, Ikea has a lot of work to do before it can actually help reduce the world's total carbon footprint.
In its 2018 fiscal year report, the company estimated that the climate footprint from its supply chain and business model may have accounted for 26.9 million tons of carbon dioxide released into the atmosphere.
While the company said at that time that the 2.8 percent hike of carbon dioxide emissions from its operations was due to the expansions of the business, it is still a significant volume that was dispelled.
On the other hand, the furniture manufacturer specified targets on how it can gradually integrate renewable energy sources into its supply chain in hopes of helping advocate on the effects of greenhouse gas emissions on the environment.
The global furniture industry is known for high carbon dioxide emissions due to the traditional business models and supply chain activities involved in the sector. With Ikea leading the way in adopting a more climate-friendly model, industry experts are hopeful that other firms will follow suit.
Aside from the latest announcement about transitioning to a "carbon neutral" business model within a decade, the Swedish furniture giant also launched new vegan food offers earlier this month.
The company started offering plant-based meals to customers in its United Kingdom restaurants earlier this month. For £5, customers will have a full meal, a dessert, and a hot beverage.
Industry analysts noted that Ikea's efforts in developing alternative meal offers is also in line with the company's goal of achieving more climate-friendly operations since the global livestock industry is also another sector that emits large volumes of carbon dioxide.
It remains to be seen if Ikea will launch further campaigns to help spread awareness about its goal of going carbon neutral. The furniture firm also has a lot of challenges to overcome before it can be a climate-positive provider in the near future.
