Swedes bring smelly Ikea to court

A group of Swedish residents has brought the oldest Ikea store to court because of having to endure bad smells.

Swedish local daily Smalanningen reported on Tuesday that residents living near the first Ikea store, which opened in 1958 in Almhult, southern Sweden, complained the smell was "incredibly bad," as bad as "fresh crap."

The sewage smell reportedly began to emerge in 2012 when the store moved to a new site. Since then the Almhult Council has tried several ways to solve the problem, including sealing wastewater wells and flushed pipes, but those efforts were futile.

Ikea also updated its sewage works after the council contacted the store. However, the smell and complaints continued.

Local residents have taken the store to the national land and environment court, which will decide how Ikea could solve the problem.

"We apologize to anyone who has been affected by the issue," a spokesman from Ikea was quoted as saying, adding that the store is investigating the cause of the bad smells. Endit