When furnishing your home it is possible to adopt a green policy.  What you may have to do is spend a little time researching where and how the products you wish to buy are sourced and made. Most companies are very open about their sourcing policies now, and if you meet any kind of resistance in acquiring information from a company about their supply chain and their sourcing policy, this is probably an indication that the company isn’t doing so well in the environmental stakes.

If you want a new coffee table, it’s probable that you will choose a wooden one.  Wood has always been a popular choice as it is such an attractive material.  But the world’s forests have suffered due to people’s demand for timber. Half of the planet’s original forests have been destroyed and only one fifth have been left completely intact.  The tide is beginning to turn though, with far greater efforts being made to replant and renew existing forests. Another way of preserving the forests is through the use of reclaimed wood for furniture manufacture.

Reclaimed wood can have a lot more character than new wood, as the wood has aged naturally and has a depth of colour and tone that is hard to find in recently harvested wood.

The same thing applies to buying a new sofa, sofa bed or other upholstered furniture.  The frame will usually be made of wood – so check on its sourcing when you’re checking the quality of the manufacture.  It’s also possible to check on the supply chain that the fabric has come from.  Were pesticides used in the production of the cotton, were any toxic dyes used to produce the colours in the fabrics?

Asking questions like these will provide you with sufficient information on the process used to create the piece of furniture. You can then make an informed choice on whether a product can be classed as ‘green’ or not.