Ancient Carpathian forest faces a new wave of IKEA-linked destruction

Rusca Montană, Romania / Warsaw, Poland - September 16, 2025 - Greenpeace warns that a new wave of logging is about to begin in the ancient Rusca Montană Forest. Activists scaled one of the biggest IKEA stores in Poland.

Greenpeace activists today scaled an IKEA megastore in Poland to unfurl a massive 110-square-metre banner. The banner features a photo of a two-century-old tree stump from the ancient Rusca Montană Forest in Romania, accompanied by the message: “We don’t want furniture made from such trees.” The protest highlights the imminent risk that, under official permits, hundreds of trees - including centuries-old “mother trees” vital for the continuity of forest ecosystems - could be felled anytime from now until the end of the year.

Last week, Greenpeace projected a cartoon-style video onto the IKEA flagship store in Bucharest and released a new investigation, exposing how Romanian suppliers linked to IKEA source wood from irreplaceable old and precious forests.

"So far, IKEA’s response has been deeply disappointing", said Robert Cyglicki, Head of Greenpeace Central and Eastern Europe’s Biodiversity Campaign. "Instead of taking responsibility, the company points to Romanian authorities and inadequate certification schemes, while refusing to fix its own sourcing policies that allow turning ancient trees into fast furniture."

IKEA is one of the largest wood consumers in the world. Poland is the company’s primary sourcing country, accounting for nearly 29% of its global virgin wood volume, while Romania supplies around 4%. Yet this 4% already means logging at least 20 km² of forests every year - and without precautionary measures, this equals the destruction of unique ecosystems such as Rusca Montană. Many of these forests are proposed for strict protection under Romania’s ongoing designation process, aligned with the EU Biodiversity Strategy target of placing at least 10% of forests under strict protection.

Scientists and NGOs warn that unless logging is immediately paused across all candidate sites, Europe risks irreversibly losing these ecosystems - home to rare species such as lynx, wolves, the pygmy owl and countless invertebrates.

"Ancient forests are our natural heritage, as irreplaceable as cultural monuments like Notre Dame Cathedral. Allowing them to be cut down and turned into fast furniture is an ecological scandal that Europe cannot afford,” said Anna Ogniewska, Greenpeace Poland campaigner.

Greenpeace insists that IKEA cannot maintain its image as a sustainability leader while simultaneously profiting from the destruction of Europe’s last great forests.

"The company’s advertisements may speak the language of responsibility, but its supply chains tell a very different story", Ogniewska added. "IKEA must act now: update its sourcing policy, exclude precious forests from its supply chains, and help protect them permanently."

Greenpeace vows to continue exposing and challenging destructive logging across the Carpathians, from Poland to Romania, until Europe’s natural cathedrals receive the protection they deserve.