IKEA's Eco-Leap: Ditching 1,400 Tons of Plastic with Innovative Paper Packaging

IKEA Components is initiating a substantial sustainability effort by gradually replacing plastic bags for furniture fittings with new paper-based alternatives during Fiscal Year 2025. This strategic shift is projected to reduce the company's annual virgin plastic consumption by approximately 1,400 tons. The initiative is a key part of IKEA’s broader "Plastics Out Agenda," which aims to eliminate all plastic from consumer packaging by 2028, moving towards the company's ultimate goal of exclusively using renewable and recyclable materials.

Lukas Exner, Production & Distribution Manager at IKEA Components, emphasized the significance of this move: "This is a significant step in our journey to reduce plastic usage and shift to more renewable materials."

The new paper-based fitting bags, which hold screws, bolts, and Allen keys for assembly, are produced in IKEA Components’ factories located in Malacky, Slovakia, and Nantong, China. These bags are crafted from paper made using production waste and wood residue sourced from external suppliers. To ensure durability, the bags incorporate a thin plastic coating; however, IKEA confirms they remain recyclable. The company is actively exploring renewable alternatives to replace this remaining plastic layer.

The implementation of these new bags began in FY2025, starting with new product launches such as the STOCKHOLM 2025 collection, and select items from existing lines including PAX and KALLAX. This transition will continue across various product categories, with the ultimate goal of full adoption by 2028. Maja Kjellberg, Packaging Development Leader, highlighted that this packaging redesign reflects a wider commitment at IKEA.

This effort reinforces IKEA’s ongoing commitment to circular materials and reducing carbon emissions throughout its global supply chain. This aligns with its broader objective of using only renewable or recyclable materials across all its products and packaging.

This move follows IKEA's broader commitment to sustainability, including phasing out single-use plastic products like straws and bags since January 2020, replacing them with sustainable alternatives. This commitment, announced in June 2018, applies to various single-use items. However, IKEA has faced scrutiny over its carry bag policies, as seen in an instance where its Hyderabad branch was fined 1,000 rupees for charging a customer for a branded paper carry bag, with the commission ruling that charging for bags featuring the company's logo amounted to unfair trade practice. IKEA has maintained that customers are not forced to buy bags and are welcome to bring their own. By the end of 2020, IKEA also aimed to transition to recycled polyester.