Around 8 percent of timber entering European Union countries in 2004 was probably illegal and could have landed up as tables and chairs sold across Europe, according to estimates by World Wide Fund for Nature researcher James Hewitt.

Experts say the best way of clamping down on illegal logging of rainforests in Asia, Africa and Latin America is to educate consumers in the West to make sure they buy furniture made from sustainable sources such as plantation wood.

To this end, the Forestry Stewardship Council (FSC) issues a logo for furniture made from approved plantation wood as opposed to wood from rainforests, which are ruined forever once chopped down even when loggers attempt to replant secondary forests.

Identifying growing consumer demand for sustainable furniture, Swedish furniture giant Ikea has set itself a goal of ensuring that at least 30 percent of its wood comes from FSC-approved sources by next year.