With its popularity from advanced technology, sophisticated designs, convenience, cheap price, and a variety of choices, everyone would have at least heard of, if not have a product, of IKEA.
IKEA, a Swedish-founded multinational group that designs and sells ready-to-assemble furniture, kitchen appliances, and home accessories, is also known for its green policy called People + Planet. They are currently developing future sustainable strategies including switching their entire lighting range to energy-efficient LED, sourcing all of the cotton from more maintainable sources, and working towards 100% renewable energy. As such, IKEA is a global company loved for not only its outstanding products, but also its care for people and their future environment.
However, one thing IKEA still sells is plastic straws-one of the main causes of sea pollution. In fact, plastic straws made the 7th most common ocean trash, according to the 2017 Ocean Conservancy’s International Coastal Cleanup report. Moreover, the top 10 items of ocean litter all consisted of plastic, such as cigarette butts, food wrappers, plastic bottles, plastic bottle caps, plastic bags, and plastic containers. Although plastic straws are small and slender in size and weight compared to other plastic wastes, because they are small, they can easily entangle marine animals and be consumed by fish and birds. Ocean Conservancy data points out that plastic has been found in more than 60% of all seabirds and 100% of sea turtle species. Ingesting plastic is insidious for animals as it will affect the animals’ fitness, nutrient uptake, and feeding efficiency. it is most likely that we will be the ones to end up consuming plastic through animals.
IKEA has announced their plans regarding plastic waste, committing to phase out all single-use plastic products by 2020.
However, as of now, IKEA is selling massive amounts of plastic straws at a cheap price. SODA, a 200 pack of drinking straws is sold at only $1.99, and a 100 pack of SÖTVATTEN high quality drinking straws are sold at $1.99.
The problem is that customers are not informed about how much harm they could cause by buying these packs of plastic straws regularly. Many customers who have the image of IKEA as a reliable green company might assume that everything they buy in IKEA would be recyclable. For people who still use plastic straws despite knowing the harm, do not have a chance of buying fewer straws.
A major company with its size and reach means greater profit and influence, but it also means a whole lot of responsibility follows. That is why IKEA needs a quicker alternative for now.
According to U.S. National Park Service, the average person uses 1.6 straws per day, and Americans use 500 million drinking straws per day. The Ocean Conservancy revealed that in a single year, 8 million metric tons of plastic enter our ocean on top of the estimated 150 million metric tons that currently circulate our marine environments. We can’t spare another year wasting away all that plastic that will eventually come back at us.
I did write a letter in the customer feedback space in IKEA’s homepage, suggesting they should at least put up warning signs next to not only plastic straws, but all plastic products, indicating information about how customers could cause severe damage to our environment by buying them so people don’t buy abundant supplies unknowingly. I also suggested they invest on developing alternatives such as stronger paper straws and biodegradable plastic cups for their own long time profit and image as well as their goals to be green.
I will continue leaving feedback for different plastic products in so many more companies. I’m also planning to create fliers and small posters to give out to local cafes, restaurants, and people in general, to raise awareness. But I’m not doing this alone. Bringing our own tumblers instead of using plastic cups for coffee, requesting not to automatically serve plastic straws in local places that still do, and requesting recycle bins in cafes are all easy ways to make a difference.
This is not just some far away future that will happen when we all die. This is something every single person should all care about, if they care about their family. If they care about children. And if they care about lives. I know we all truly hope we could show our kids the beauty of nature we grew up in. Well, do something to deserve it.
In all those goals and resolutions for the new year ahead, so what is your 2019 small promise for the earth we’ve borrowed?
Check out my Plastic Straw Ban article for more information on plastic straws:
IKEA, a Swedish-founded multinational group that designs and sells ready-to-assemble furniture, kitchen appliances, and home accessories, is also known for its green policy called People + Planet. They are currently developing future sustainable strategies including switching their entire lighting range to energy-efficient LED, sourcing all of the cotton from more maintainable sources, and working towards 100% renewable energy. As such, IKEA is a global company loved for not only its outstanding products, but also its care for people and their future environment.
However, one thing IKEA still sells is plastic straws-one of the main causes of sea pollution. In fact, plastic straws made the 7th most common ocean trash, according to the 2017 Ocean Conservancy’s International Coastal Cleanup report. Moreover, the top 10 items of ocean litter all consisted of plastic, such as cigarette butts, food wrappers, plastic bottles, plastic bottle caps, plastic bags, and plastic containers. Although plastic straws are small and slender in size and weight compared to other plastic wastes, because they are small, they can easily entangle marine animals and be consumed by fish and birds. Ocean Conservancy data points out that plastic has been found in more than 60% of all seabirds and 100% of sea turtle species. Ingesting plastic is insidious for animals as it will affect the animals’ fitness, nutrient uptake, and feeding efficiency. it is most likely that we will be the ones to end up consuming plastic through animals.
IKEA has announced their plans regarding plastic waste, committing to phase out all single-use plastic products by 2020.
However, as of now, IKEA is selling massive amounts of plastic straws at a cheap price. SODA, a 200 pack of drinking straws is sold at only $1.99, and a 100 pack of SÖTVATTEN high quality drinking straws are sold at $1.99.
The problem is that customers are not informed about how much harm they could cause by buying these packs of plastic straws regularly. Many customers who have the image of IKEA as a reliable green company might assume that everything they buy in IKEA would be recyclable. For people who still use plastic straws despite knowing the harm, do not have a chance of buying fewer straws.
A major company with its size and reach means greater profit and influence, but it also means a whole lot of responsibility follows. That is why IKEA needs a quicker alternative for now.
According to U.S. National Park Service, the average person uses 1.6 straws per day, and Americans use 500 million drinking straws per day. The Ocean Conservancy revealed that in a single year, 8 million metric tons of plastic enter our ocean on top of the estimated 150 million metric tons that currently circulate our marine environments. We can’t spare another year wasting away all that plastic that will eventually come back at us.
I did write a letter in the customer feedback space in IKEA’s homepage, suggesting they should at least put up warning signs next to not only plastic straws, but all plastic products, indicating information about how customers could cause severe damage to our environment by buying them so people don’t buy abundant supplies unknowingly. I also suggested they invest on developing alternatives such as stronger paper straws and biodegradable plastic cups for their own long time profit and image as well as their goals to be green.
I will continue leaving feedback for different plastic products in so many more companies. I’m also planning to create fliers and small posters to give out to local cafes, restaurants, and people in general, to raise awareness. But I’m not doing this alone. Bringing our own tumblers instead of using plastic cups for coffee, requesting not to automatically serve plastic straws in local places that still do, and requesting recycle bins in cafes are all easy ways to make a difference.
This is not just some far away future that will happen when we all die. This is something every single person should all care about, if they care about their family. If they care about children. And if they care about lives. I know we all truly hope we could show our kids the beauty of nature we grew up in. Well, do something to deserve it.
In all those goals and resolutions for the new year ahead, so what is your 2019 small promise for the earth we’ve borrowed?
Check out my Plastic Straw Ban article for more information on plastic straws: