The IKEA vision is to create a better everyday life for the many people, and we believe those lives are truly better when they’re lived sustainably. For us, it’s about balancing economic growth and positive social impact with environmental protection and renewal. So, our mission overall is to meet the needs of people today without compromising the needs of future generations.
This means rethinking and inspiring changes in lifestyle and consumption, as well as adopting new ways of working. Because the more people we reach, the bigger impact we have in helping the many create a better everyday life.
People and Planet
We have identified three major challenges impacting our business:
The Climate Crisis: No longer a distant threat, but a visible reality, we believe that the climate change is one of the biggest challenges facing humanity.
Unsustainable consumption:In a world that already uses resources requiring more than one planet, billions of people put an even greater pressure on the planet. .
Inequality: Every year, people move out of poverty, while others tragically fall back into it.There is also an ver-increasing level of inequality in the world with a widening gap between the wealthiest in society and the rest. Gender equality is far from a reality, and many people are still denied basic rights and equal opportunities.
As a response to these three challenges, we’ve identified three corresponding focus areas to help us fulfil the IKEA vision and become more sustainable:
healthy and sustainable living
climate action and circularity
fair and equal
Healthy and sustainable living
The way we live at home has a big impact on the planet and our health. Many people want to make healthier and more sustainable choices – but not at the expense of price, quality or convenience. With our size and reach, we have a big opportunity to make healthier and more sustainable living affordable and accessible to people around the world. By promoting more sustainable home furnishing and food products, services to help prolong the lives of products,, services, life-at-home knowledge, and inspiration, we can make healthier and more sustainable living possible for the many people. To achieve this, we actively listen to people in each of our markets and work together with others to create meaningful connections and experiences.
By 2030 our ambition is to inspire and enable more than 1 billion people to live a better everyday life within the boundaries of the planet.
With the IKEA Energy Services , we’re making it easier and more affordable for our customers to use and produce renewable energy, through home solar and electricity subscription services from renewable sources, offered and delivered by local partners in different countries. This is an important contribution towards supporting the transition to a net zero society. Read more about our energy efforts and our performance in FY23.
We are testing, adopting and scaling up solutions that can help to prolong the life of our products, keep resources in use for longer, and make it easier for people to give products they no longer need a second life. This can reduce the use of resources and be more affordable for customers. Read more about our products and services for circular living in FY23, including our As-Is areas in our stores, our Buy-Back service and our spare assembly parts.
In FY23, we also continued to develop our in-store Sustainable Living Shops. These are spaces within our stores designed to build awareness about sustainable living practices at home. We use them to highlight products and actions that can help customers to: use less energy, use less water, create less waste, reuse products and prolong product life. Read about our progress in FY23 and how we are supporting customers to actively participate in circular actions.
Every year, IKEA is serving millions of food customers around the world. By including more plant-based alternatives on our menus, we can enable and inspire more people to try plant-based eating. Our goal for 2025 is that 50% of our IKEA restaurant meals offered will be plant-based. One of the ways we can achieve our vision is to offer affordable and accessible plant-based food with a lower climate impact. The latest addition to our plant-based products is the plant dog which was introduced at our bistros in 14 European countries in FY23 and will be rolled out globally from early 2024. Read more about how we make our plant-based food more accessible and affordable.
Climate action and circularity
The world is facing a climate crisis that will affect the lives of many millions of people today and for generations to come. Human activities have warmed the planet’s average temperature by more than 1.1°C, and we’re using resources faster than our planet can regenerate*. With 1 million species at risk of extinction, we’re on course for irrevocable damage to nature and ecosystems.
We know we have a huge responsibility –and many opportunities – to make a positive difference on climate change. As stubborn optimists, we believe that we can create a better future.
There are many existing solutions to tackle the climate crisis, but we urgently need accelerate action . This can offer new opportunities for job creation, innovation, economic growth and reduced energy costs. And we’re proving that it’s possible to reduce our climate footprint while increasing our revenue. The Ingka total climate footprint (scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions) has decreased by 24.3% from FY16 baseline. The decrease was achieved against a 30.9% increase in revenue. This reduction is coming primarily from implementing carbon saving measures, such renewable electricity and energy efficiency; however, changes in our business operations and sales have also contributed.
By 2050 our ambition is to become net zero
At IKEA, we are committed to the Paris Agreement and to contribute to limiting the global temperature rise to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels. For many years the IKEA business has been working towards drastically reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and removing and storing carbon through forestry, agriculture and products. We’ve also been actively driving several initiatives beyond our value chain to create broader societal impact. And as the world continues to evolve, with advancements in science and aligned industry standards, IKEA continues to take action. In line with external movements and our own ambitions, we have reframed the IKEA climate approach from “Climate Positive” to “Net Zero and Beyond.”
The journey continues
The strengthened climate ambition ‘Net Zero and Beyond’ focuses on three areas:
Drastically reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions: by halving absolute GHG across the entire Ingka Group value chain (scopes 1, 2 and 3) by FY30 (vs FY16) and reaching net zero emissions by FY50*, without relying on carbon offsets to meet these absolute reduction targets. Approved and validated by SBTi.
In addition: Removing and storing carbon through forestry, agriculture, and products: by permanently removing and storing carbon in the atmosphere through nature-based solutions in the value chain, addressing the root causes of the climate footprint, improving resilience toward impacts of climate change and bringing benefits to nature and people.
Going beyond the value chain: by contributing to additional reductions of GHG emissions in society and advocating for climate policies in line with science.
Key Ingka Group actions to transition the business to Net Zero and Beyond include:
Striving 100% renewable energy across its operations, and electrification of customer home deliveries and co-worker travel and continually improving energy efficiency.
Increased use of materials and offering food ingredients and a more plant-based food offer, with a lower climate footprint.
Transitioning towards a circular business for example by offering buy back and take back services, in-store circular hubs, online platforms for second-hand products.
Promoting sustainable choices for our customers, for example by providing energy services, so many more people can use or generate their own renewable energy.
*The Science Based Target initiative validated this target in April 2024 for Ingka Group and for Inter IKEA Group in June 2024. In accordance with the Net-Zero Standard, by FY50 we will reduce the absolute GHG emissions from the IKEA value chain by at least 90% compared to FY16, with residual emissions neutralized by removing and storing carbon within our own value chain.
It’s part of our mission to ensure we put people at the heart of our business. We’re present in many communities, and when those communities thrive, we do too. We recognise the challenges people are facing and the rapid changes in our communities – particularly where rights and opportunities are far from equal.
Guided by our values, we want to create lasting positive change in the communities where we are present. This means creating a fairer and more equal society, by growing our business in a fair and inclusive way.
Fair and equal growth leads to motivated co-workers, innovative meeting places, and resilient and empowered communities.
By 2030 our ambition is to improve the well-being of millions of people by becoming a truly people-centred company and employer.
We are committed to promoting and supporting a world where human rights are a reality for all. We put respect for human rights at the heart of our business, integrating it into our strategies, policies and processes. Our respect for human rights covers our co-workers, customers, workers in our supply chain and our neighbours – in fact, everyone our business touches. Read more about our performance and our policy on human rights.
The safety and wellbeingof our co-workers is our top priority. We work to ensure a safe and healthy work environment for everyone, and we support our co-workers in staying healthy, in feeling connected with colleagues and in maintaining their work-life balance. We celebrate diversity and together we will create a workplace that is as diverse as the world is, and as inclusive as the world should be. Read about how we work to create better lives for our co-workers.
We want to create a positive impact for the neighbourhoods where we operate. For years, we’ve worked in partnerships with community organisations to find solutions to local social and environmental challenges, and to have a lasting positive impact on our communities In FY23 we supported over 99,000 people through our social impact programmes in local neighbourhoods. And to date, we have supported 2,935 refugees across 24 markets through our Skills for Employment programme for displaced people. This programme is designed for refugees who need support and skills development before they can find work. Read more about our initiatives during FY23 and how we want to be a force for good by creating a fairer and more equal society.
Our Approach to Human Rights
The Ingka Group Policy on Human Rights and Equality is the basis of our approach. We are also guided by the IKEA Employment Standards, our Code of Conduct and IWAY – the IKEA supplier code of conduct.
Potential human rights risks
We aim to focus on the most salient human rights impacts – those at risk of the most severe negative impacts. We have identified a range of potential human rights risks for our industry, including modern slavery and forced labour, low wages, undocumented cash wages, excessive hours, unsafe working conditions, and threats to freedom of association rights. Assessing the human rights impacts of our business activities is an ongoing process and we are continually learning and developing our approach. We know there is always more we can do to ensure respect for human rights across our business and throughout our value chain.
Due diligence
The IWAY System is designed to ensure that sustainability impacts, including human rights risks, are identified before supply agreements are entered into and then continuously identified, monitored, and managed over time. As part of the selection process, potential suppliers undergo a risk assessment which covers human rights aspects such as workplace health and safety, wages and working hours. Other human rights risks are picked up via the Ingka Group risk management process.
Remediation
Our approach to remediation, including which impacts we prioritise for remediation, depends on how we are connected to the impact and its nature and severity. We take seriously our responsibility to remediate any negative human rights impacts on people, society and the environment that we cause or contribute to. We are reviewing how we provide remedy to affected stakeholders beyond our direct business partners to ensure we align with the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights.
Grievance mechanisms
Co-workers who have any human rights concerns can raise them through our internal grievance mechanism, Trustline, in addition, we request all our suppliers, via IWAY, to put a grievance mechanism in place that is known to their workers and enables workers to raise complaints or concerns without fear of retaliation. When requested, we provide guidance and support.
