Stockholm, Sweden \u2013 Timber from irreplaceable Swedish forests is ending up in sawmills supplying wood for Ikea furniture production, reveals a new investigation from Greenpeace Nordic. Using tracking devices, investigators followed logs from eight logged forest areas in northern Sweden and documented links to manufacturers of Ikea\u2019s popular IVAR and HEJNE shelving. Greenpeace is calling on Ikea, one of the world’s largest consumers of wood, to stop sourcing from forests that need protection, including in the company\u2019s home country.<\/p>\n\n
Frida Bengtsson<\/strong>, head of Greenpeace in Sweden said:<\/strong> \u201cIkea prides itself on high sustainability standards, and has a stated ambition to use its size to be a positive force for forests and halt biodiversity loss. It should go without saying that wood from forests that need protection has no place in Ikea\u2019s products. No shelf or chair in the world is more important than saving irreplaceable forests. Ikea could make that decision today. All it takes is a clear instruction to its suppliers to stay away from these unique ecosystems.\u201d The new investigation from Greenpeace Nordic<\/a> tracked logs to two sawmills operated by forestry company SCA. The logged areas are mapped as continuity forests \u2013 forests that have remained tree covered over a long period without ever being clear-cut. Wood from one of the sawmills, Munksund, was documented at Hedlunda, a manufacturer of Ikea\u2019s IVAR shelving. The report also maps a supply chain from the other sawmill, Bollstabruk, through SCA to Tr\u00e4Team, which manufactures HEJNE shelving. Tracking devices followed the logs from the forest areas to the sawmills. The onward links to furniture manufacturers and Ikea were established through company information, customs records, product labelling and field visits.<\/p>\n\n Karolina Carlsson, forest campaigner at Greenpeace Nordic and co-author of the investigation, said<\/strong>: \u201cOur investigation reveals a clear pattern and maps how wood from some of Sweden\u2019s last remaining continuity forests that need protection can end up in Ikea furniture that many of us have in our homes. I do not think this is something Ikea\u2019s customers want, and it should be unacceptable to a company that puts so much effort into sustainability.\u201d<\/p>\n\n Unlike the majority of the Swedish forest landscape which have been clear-cut and transformed for industrial production, continuity forests contain habitats that have developed over long periods of time, creating the best conditions for biodiversity, which cannot be replaced by planting new trees. The Swedish Forest Agency has concluded that logging of continuity forests needs to cease immediately if Sweden is to meet its national and international environmental objectives.[2] <\/p>\n\n Greenpeace Nordic is calling on Ikea to immediately stop sourcing wood from forests that need protection in Europe, including all of Sweden\u2019s remaining continuity forests, and to verify that this requirement is met throughout its supply chain.<\/p>\n\n The Swedish investigation follows two reports published on 13 October 2026. The Missing Manual<\/a> examines gaps in Ikea\u2019s sourcing rules, including their failure to exclude wood from forests that need protection.[3] A field investigation in Romania<\/a> documented the logging of an approximately 170-year-old natural forest before proposed strict protection could take effect, and traced timber to a depot supplying an Ikea manufacturer.[4]<\/p>\n\n ENDS<\/p>\n\n Photos and Videos<\/strong> available from the Greenpeace Media Library Previous Romanian investigation:<\/strong> Timber was traced to a depot supplying Masifpanel, which manufactures Ikea\u2019s BEKV\u00c4M step stool and SNIGLAR cot.<\/p>\n\n [1] Nestl\u00e9, Zalando and L\u2019Or\u00e9al<\/a> announce plans to phase out wood fibre from SCA in their packaging supply chains<\/p>\n\n [2] Swedish Forest Agency: Biologisk m\u00e5ngfald i skogen, report 2026\/07, revised edition (in Swedish)<\/a><\/p>\n\n [3] The Missing Manual<\/a> \u2013 new investigation from Greenpeace Nordic<\/p>\n\n
Several major international companies have already taken action over Swedish forestry practices. Between autumn 2025 and spring 2026, Nestl\u00e9, Zalando and L\u2019Or\u00e9al announced plans to phase out wood fibre from SCA in their packaging supply chains.[1] The announcements followed criticism of the Swedish forestry company\u2019s logging practices and their impacts on nature and the rights of the Indigenous S\u00e1mi people.<\/p>\n\n
<\/a>Vanishing forests (part 2) \u2013 How Ikea drives destruction in the boreal forest
<\/a>Notes:
<\/strong> About the Swedish investigation:<\/strong> Tracking devices followed logs during spring 2026 from six logged forest areas in Norrbotten to SCA\u2019s Munksund sawmill in Pite\u00e5, and from two areas in V\u00e4sternorrland to SCA\u2019s Bollstabruk sawmill. Onward links were documented to Hedlunda in Lycksele and Tr\u00e4Team in Kramfors. Based on the combined evidence, Greenpeace Nordic assesses that wood from Swedish continuity forests that need protection is highly likely to regularly enter Ikea\u2019s furniture production.<\/p>\n\n