SUSTAINABILITY

There’s no home to which Ethan Allen is more committed than our planet, the home we all share. That's why we make furniture in ways that preserve our world for future generations.

By finding ways to use less electricity, water, and other resources, as well as ways to reduce the amount of waste we put into landfills, we fine‑tune our processes and pack even more value into every product.

CARBON FOOTPRINT

-30%

Reduced 10.5 million pounds of CO₂e

WATER USAGE

-33%

Reduced 11.9 million gallons

LANDFILL WASTE

-35%

Reduced 1 million pounds

GREENHOUSE GASES

-25%

Reduced 10 million pounds of CO₂e

Our Achievements

2013–2018: Named a Vermont Business Partner by Vermont’s Department of Environmental Conservation

2012–2018: New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, Certificate of Environmental Stewardship

2009, 2013: Vermont Governor’s Award for Environmental Excellence

2012: Environmental Excellence Award, American Home Furnishings Alliance; continuing membership in consortium through 2018

2012: Congressional Certificate of Special Recognition, Representative Chris Murphy (CT–5)

2011: Northeastern Loggers Association, Outstanding Use of Wood Award

2011: Environmental Merit Award, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, New England Office

In Our Workshops

Many of the environmental initiatives that we adopt as a company begin in our North American workshops, where they’re spearheaded by people who, because they know their jobs inside and out, are experts on finding better and more eco-friendly ways of working.

In Our Materials

FROM FOREST…

More than half of the logs that we use in our Vermont workshops come from Vermont forests; the rest are sourced regionally and around the U.S. We make it a priority to use wood from responsibly managed forests.

We also source products crafted from reclaimed wood. Something that would be discarded becomes something beautiful, preserving the world's forests in the process.

…TO FINISH…

We use finishes that are low in volatile organic compounds (low-VOC) and in hazardous air pollutants (low-HAP), including many water-based finishes on our upholstered furniture. Air stays cleaner, from our workshops all the way to your home.

…AND IN BETWEEN

The flexible polyurethane foams used in our upholstery are certified through the CertiPUR-US® program. Of the materials we use in our fiber wraps, at least 80% are recycled; of the metals used in our springs, 50% are recycled.

Cleaning Up in the Fight Against Pollution

An old railroad site adjacent to our Beecher Falls, Vermont, workshop was home to an old railroad turntable and an array of buildings, all constructed in the 1830s.

The property was also contaminated with asbestos, lead paint, and a 15,000-gallon above-ground diesel tank that posed an environmental risk to our workshop and to nearby Halls Stream, which flows into the Connecticut River.

In addition to reclaiming the land for our facility, we wanted to protect our associates, many of whom live within 30 to 40 feet of the railroad.

Starting in 2011, we took action to give this unusable piece of land new life. Here's what we did:

Eliminated the risk of fuel seeping into the groundwater by cleaning up the diesel tank and its surrounding pad
Disposed of asbestos from abandoned buildings
Classified and cleaned up lead-based paint
Removed garbage and construction debris, then backfilled with clean earth
Donated the old railroad turntable to a community museum.

This project is just one example of how we transform environmental risk into community reward. For a deeper look at what we've achieved so far and where we're headed next, download our latest report.