Ikea Leads Charge to Improve Environment by Switching Lightbulbs

If a million people changed a single lamp at home to an LED bulb, it would be the equivalent of taking 6,700 cars off the road or planting 17 million trees, according to Lars Petersson, Ikea U.S. president.

You might expect that kind of environmentally friendly salesmanship from a guy who sells LED lightbulbs—which is what Petersson's company intends to do in all of its stores in 27 countries starting Sept. 1. Did he mention it’ll save LED converts money too?

“At Ikea, we believe that everyone should be able to afford to live a more sustainable life at home and save money on their energy bills. Also, using less energy reduces greenhouse gas emissions that contribute to climate change. Changing a light bulb may seem like a small action, but many small actions can lead to a big change,” Petersson said in a press release.

In 2014, 75 percent of all lighting products sold at Ikea were LED or LED compatible.

LED bulbs use 85 percent less energy than incandescent bulbs and can last up to 20 years, according to Ikea. Since 2013, Ikea customers in the U.S. have purchased 7.7 million LED bulbs, helping them to save nearly $3 billion in energy costs.