Furniture
Many furniture products contain and release chemicals of high concern such as PBDEs—a brominated flame retardant. PBDEs build up in breast milk and increase the risk of neurological problems in children. American women have the highest global levels of PBDEs in their breast milk. Furniture products also can contain other harmful chemicals such as PFOAs—perfluorinated chemicals. PFOAs are global contaminants that have found to be carcinogenic in animal studies. Pesticides can also be applied to carpets and textiles prior to sale.
Furniture companies committed to providing consumers with safer products
Herman Miller is committed to using MBDC’s Cradle to Cradle protocol (McDonough Braugart Design Chemistry, www.mbdc.com) to replace persistent bioaccumulative chemicals with safer alternatives in all their product lines. As a result, their new chair, MIRA, does not contain BFRs or PVC. To learn more about Herman Miller, please see CPA’s case study in our Healthy Business Strategies Report.
IKEA has eliminated brominated flame retardants and is working to replace persistent bioaccumlative chemicals with safer alternatives in all their product lines. To learn more about IKEA’s environmental policies, click here.
Steel Case is committed to using MBDC’s Cradle to Cradle protocol to replace persistent bioaccumulative chemicals with safer alternatives for all their product lines.
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