ikea products

[Bunnyluvva13]

does anyone know if the ikea Ljusnan baskets are rabbit safe? they are made of seagrass but i dont know if they have any lacquers.. the lids would work well as a tossing toy, and the containers to hold toys or chews. Also if there are any hamster owners that know this is safe for hamsters please tell me..

[Sindri]

I personally don’t know but I would perhaps talk to someone from Ikea and ask them maybe they would know that what I would do. I wish I could be more of help. Good luck!

[BinkyBunny]

I am not sure about baskets that are made for humans – Even if they don’t have lacquer, they may have been sprayed with pesticides (before woven and/or after for shipping). I agree with Sindriona – best to ask an IKEA rep.

[Bunnyluvva13]

sadly where i live if i asked someone they would most likely not be friendly… but i can try next time i go to ikea

[Bam]

I’ve e-mailed Ikea now and asked if they know if Ljusnan is non-toxic. I’ll get back when they get back to me.

IKEA staff is supposed to be helpful and service-minded so if they aren’t at your IKEA you should report them.

[Deleted User]

Sadly customer service is out the door! (not just Ikea). And people wonder why I HATE shopping! I used to complain when I got ‘super’ bad service, but I gave up on that when nothing changed – no one cares! So NOW when I get really good service, I make the effort the call the manager/owner to say what a great experience I had with *name* and that I will return as a future customer. They are so astounded they struggle to say ‘thank you’. I can only hope this encourages them to keep/hold onto the staff that make the effort to be ‘NICE’. I’m also a great one for advertising ‘word of mouth’ – if I have a bad experience I tell everyone! And if I have a good one – I do the same and I recommend them!

[Bunnyluvva13]

thanks for asking for me! i didnt even think about emailing them!

[Bam]

Hi again, I’m sorry, I forgot about this.

Here’s the answer I got, I translated it with google translate. It’s long and doesn’t say anything about Ljusnan specifically.

Thank you for your inquiry regarding our products.

Customers should always be confident that IKEA products are safe and wholesome. IKEA wants to minimize or totally abstain from the use of chemicals and substances that can be harmful to humans and the environment.

At IKEA, we welcome the EU REACH legislation on chemicals and substances. The legislation is fully in line with our preventative work with chemicals. All products in all markets must comply with restrictions in the REACH directive.

SVHC Substances of Very High Concern, are substances of very high concern, as defined in REACH Directive and the candidate list. These substances have very high concern which can have serious and lasting effects on human health and the environment. IKEA has decided not to allow any SVHC in our products, ie. go further than REACH.
We apply the precautionary principle when it comes to chemicals and we give constraints in an internal breakdown of chemical compounds and substances. Along with material and product specifications, and other requirements constitutes a binding contract with our suppliers. To follow up that the requirements are met, we perform random checks where the products are tested by third party laboratories (independent accredited test laboratories). However, it is not possible to test and guarantee each product.

We label our products with the IKEA logo because we want our customers to know that it stands for products that are safe to use and produced with respect for people and the environment.
IKEA complies with all relevant laws and regulations concerning chemicals in our products and are often one step ahead by phasing out substances before they are regulated differently. However, we can unfortunately not reveal any chemical lists.

If you are interested in reading IKEA general guidelines for sustainable and healthy products, read our Sustainability Report for 2012 (Sustainability report 2012) which is available to download from our website, http://www.ikea.se.

Wish you a nice day

Sincerely
Sara
IKEA Customer Service

[NewBunnyOwner123]

Lol that’s like a very generic answer. I feel like they just typed a verse out of a book and didn’t answer your question specifically haha

[Bam]

I think they try to avoid all possibility of law suits or scandals, so they don’t dare say anything palpable. You can just imagine.

But since I said I would forward the answer, I did so – albeit with some delay =/

[Bunnyluvva13]

im SO confused now! is it safe or not?

[jerseygirl]

Interesting to read Ikeas stance, thanks bam.

Bunnyluvva, they usually list lacquer if its used. This appears to be unlacquered.

As far a pesticides, my understanding is pesticides are not used directly on seagrass crops. The seawater used to flood the paddy fields *could* contain some contaminants due to urban and agricultural run off. It’s hard to say.

These baskets are made in Vietnam by Ngoc Son Handicraft and Furniture Co.
You could email them if you really want to investigate further.

You can always wash seagrass items in water as extra precaution. Just reshape the basket a few times while it dries. And make sure it dries thoroughly. Maybe try with one of the lids first?
I’ve rinsed willow baskets down before and it gets a strong smell after which was disappointing. I haven’t had that happen with seagrass though.

[Author]

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