The News
Greenpeace has alleged wood from Rusca Montană, a forest in the Romanian Carpathians slated for strict protection, was clear-cut and ended up in Ikea’s SNIGLAR bed and BEKVÄM step stool, according to its report and a Greenpeace Romania field investigation.
“Every two seconds, a tree is felled to feed Ikea’s supply chain,” said Frida Bengtsson, head of Greenpeace in Sweden.
“We do not agree with several of the report’s conclusions,” Ikea said in an emailed statement to Supply Chain Dive.
The details
Ikea has claimed the logging met local law and FSC standards. Greenpeace argued those rules let a forest proposed for protection be cut before the protection took effect.
The forest was slated for strict protection in early 2025, was logged this year and lost its proposed conservation status, Greenpeace alleged.
Ikea did not dispute the clear-cutting or the link to its supply chain, according to Greenpeace’s release.
“This isn’t responsible forestry; it’s an ecological tragedy,” said Valentin Salageanu, a spokesperson for Greenpeace Romania.
Ikea said most of its wood comes from Europe and nearly all of it is certified or recycled.
Ikea’s suppliers processed about 14.7 million cubic meters of roundwood equivalent in fiscal 2025. Of that, 81% was virgin fiber and 19% recycled, reported Supply Chain Dive.
About 81% of Ikea’s wood comes from Europe, with Poland and Lithuania the largest sources of virgin wood. Ikea says 96.5% of its wood and paper is FSC-certified or recycled.
“We have considered the Greenpeace report and welcome the discussion about how biodiversity outcomes can be improved,” Ikea said.
Greenpeace wants Ikea to stop buying from forests that qualify for protection. US and EU rules test whether wood was legally harvested or tied to deforestation.
Greenpeace has asked Ikea to stop sourcing from high-biodiversity forests that qualify for protection and to adopt board-level biodiversity targets.
The US Lacey Act bars trade in wood harvested in violation of the source country’s laws.
The EU’s deforestation regulation applies to large companies from Dec 30, 2026, according to the European Commission.
What’s next
Greenpeace released the report during the UN Biodiversity Conference, CBD COP17 in Yerevan. The EU deforestation rule applies to large firms from Dec 30.
(Photo credit: Wikimedia Commons)
