Culture
Eco-Friendly Packaging Isn't Enough
Environmentally conscious products are great. But they don’t get at the real problems in a culture that prioritizes disposability.
Ikea is exploring the idea of cushioning items in a biodegradable, mushroom-based foam molded into flat-pack-friendly shapes, Joanna Yarrow, the head of sustainability for Ikea’s U.K. arm, recently explained to the Telegraph.
The eco-friendly foam would consist of mycelium—branching, gossamer threads—growing around “clean agricultural waste, such as corn stalks or husks,” the Telegraph noted. Gizmodo estimated that product would decompose outdoors in about a month. (Inhabitat pointed out that the idea isn’t entirely unprecedented; Dell uses this technique to ship certain parts.)