IKEA is replacing Styrofoam with mushroom packaging
Originally posted on LinkedIn, July 7, 2025.
IKEA is working to replace Styrofoam packaging with packaging made from mushrooms.
The company developed it with Ecovative. Agricultural waste is compressed into molds and seeded with a fungal culture. Within days, it grows into a dense white structure that can be used as packaging. After use, it can be scattered in a garden, where it decomposes into the soil and feeds fish, insects, and plants.
The advantages are clear:
- It decomposes within weeks, compared with the hundreds to thousands of years Styrofoam takes.
- Production uses far less energy, about 12% of the energy required to make plastic.
- It uses circular, bio-based materials made from local agricultural byproducts.
- It can be shaped to fit complex molds.
There are still challenges. Growing the packaging takes 5–7 days, and it costs more than Styrofoam. Ideal decomposition also depends on composting conditions such as temperature and moisture, as well as access to organic recycling infrastructure that does not exist in every country.
After successful demonstrations by IKEA and Ecovative in early 2020, the next step is mass industrial adoption.