The Kitchen Cabinet Manufacturers Association (KCMA), working with ClimatePositiveNOW.org, is furthering the movement to educate designers on—and help consumers understand—the sustainability advantages of the wood-based materials used in kitchens and cabinets.
We know that trees naturally scrub carbon from the atmosphere and release oxygen, and now new data from the Composite Panel Association (CPA) helps us quantify just how much carbon is being stored by the wood used by our members in their cabinetry. According to the CPA, the North American composite wood used in kitchens and bathrooms in 2021 alone is sequestering over 3 million metric tons of carbon. This is 1.08 million metric tons more carbon than is released turning that wood into cabinets and substrates for countertops, going beyond achieving net-zero carbon emissions and benefiting the environment by removing extra CO2 from the atmosphere.
Even a small kitchen uses enough wood and composite wood panels to store over 400 lbs. of naturally captured carbon than is released in the production and use of those panels. This is why we can say these materials are ‘climate positive.’ With durable decorative surfaces and quality hardware, our members’ products are keeping this extra carbon out of the atmosphere for decades.