When you think about lasting product that you’re going to pass down from generation to generation, the blue and yellow cube of Ikea doesn’t usually spring to mind. Rather, the furniture giant brings to mind colorful pieces of furniture and a store that resembles something like a medieval maze. But instead of topiary hedges, there are endless coffee tables called “Lillberg” and Swedish meatballs for a dollar. It’s enough to twist anyone’s head into a "knop."

And for a greenie, going to Ikea can really feel like "kaos."  (Okay, I'll stop with the Swedish.  Thank you, Sweden!) You look around at the mounds of particle board and think – how can this possibly be green? The furniture doesn’t last past a generation, so that cute changing table you buy for your baby is not going to be dressing your grandchildren. (I did, however, once drop an Ikea wooden bookcase down a flight of concrete steps – here’s a tip: hire movers – and aside from a few particleboard chips, it survived.)

So the question remains – just how green can Ikea really be? It turns out, a lot. In the recently updated Greenopia guide to green retailers, Ikea gets three out of four leaves.  For starters, the company offers a comprehensive take-back program for packaging, batteries, CFLs, and other items and all new stores are built using US Green Building Council guidelines. Almost half of Ikea’s energy comes from renewable sources and it transports its products using efficient means.

We’ve all seen the huge blue reusable bags that Ikea consumers carry around like mini-parachutes. The company has entirely eliminated plastic bags from its American stores. It reports that 71% of its furniture is recyclable, made from recycled materials, or both. Further, the company recycles 84% of the waste generated in its stores.

When you think about lasting product that you’re going to pass down from generation to generation, the blue and yellow cube of Ikea doesn’t usually spring to mind. Rather, the furniture giant brings to mind colorful pieces of furniture and a store that resembles something like a medieval maze. But instead of topiary hedges, there are endless coffee tables called “Lillberg” and Swedish meatballs for a dollar. It’s enough to twist anyone’s head into a "knop."

And for a greenie, going to Ikea can really feel like "kaos."  (Okay, I'll stop with the Swedish.  Thank you, Sweden!) You look around at the mounds of particle board and think – how can this possibly be green? The furniture doesn’t last past a generation, so that cute changing table you buy for your baby is not going to be dressing your grandchildren. (I did, however, once drop an Ikea wooden bookcase down a flight of concrete steps – here’s a tip: hire movers – and aside from a few particleboard chips, it survived.)

So the question remains – just how green can Ikea really be? It turns out, a lot. In the recently updated Greenopia guide to green retailers, Ikea gets three out of four leaves.  For starters, the company offers a comprehensive take-back program for packaging, batteries, CFLs, and other items and all new stores are built using US Green Building Council guidelines. Almost half of Ikea’s energy comes from renewable sources and it transports its products using efficient means.

We’ve all seen the huge blue reusable bags that Ikea consumers carry around like mini-parachutes. The company has entirely eliminated plastic bags from its American stores. It reports that 71% of its furniture is recyclable, made from recycled materials, or both. Further, the company recycles 84% of the waste generated in its stores.

Ikea is almost formaldehyde-free – the company claims that the formaldehyde emission levels in IKEA wood products to be equal to the levels of natural wood.  And you know the reason your furniture comes in a flat package that then has to be assembled to often bewildering and always entertaining instructions? According to sources, these flat packages are to reduce IKEA's carbon impact. Not in the business of transporting air, Ikea reports that a delivery truck filled with flat-packed chairs can carry the equivalent of six trucks of fully-assembled chairs.

Ikea has pledged to use sustainable wood, but they have struggled in this area. In 2006, Ikea promised 30% of its wood used annually would come from forests certified as responsibly managed by 2009. Their long-term goal is to source wood from Forest Stewardship Council-certified forests, but today only a small number are FSC-certified. However, Inhabitat reports that a new forestry plan for 2009-2012 was approved last year – and this one pledges to bring certified wood volumes up to 35%.

It seems Ikea had managed to incorporate a sense of community concern while building a worldwide corporation. In a sense, they are a company that has kept true to its humble origins. Founded in the 1940s by farmer’s son Ingvar Kamprad, the IKEA moniker name comes from his initials, those of the family farm, Elmtaryd, and the nearest village, Agunnaryd. You can read more about Ikea’s green deeds here.