Most Eco-Friendly Ovens

If you’re looking to buy a new oven but want to be as eco-friendly as possible, you’ve come to the right place. We’ll look into the most energy efficient ovens, the most ethical companies selling ovens and even some alternatives to traditional ovens that you might not have considered before. Of course many of us have to take into account the initial cost of any new large kitchen appliance, and I will factor that in as we look at the most eco-friendly ovens in the UK.

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Gas or Electric Oven?

Before I started doing research into this topic I thought I’d be ignoring gas ovens completely, because at least with an electric oven you do have the option of a renewable energy supplier. Turns out that the question of whether gas or electric ovens are more environmentally friendly is a bit more complicated than I first thought.

When looking at hobs you have the main choice of gas, electric or induction. It’s unlikely you’ll find an electric coil hob these days unless you’re buying secondhand so I won’t be looking at those. Modern ovens, of all types, are a lot more energy efficient these days and there are improvements all the time.

Pros and Cons of gas and electric ovens

We’re going to look at all the pros and cons of gas and electric ovens, not just the environmental implications.

Gas Vs Electric Ovens

• Gas gives you more control when cooking as you can adjust the temperature more easily.
• Electric ovens take longer to heat up and cool down so there’s a lot of wasted energy.
• Gas is hotter than electric so you’re more likely to burn the edges of your food – keep an eye on your food and rotate if necessary.
• Electric ovens tend to be cheaper to buy than gas ovens.
• Gas ovens do have the potential of gas leaks, although with modern ovens this is pretty rare.
• Gas stoves can reduce the air quality in your home. They emit nitrogen dioxide, carbon monoxide, and formaldehyde. These gases can present a real problem for anyone with asthma, emphysema, or any respiratory illness or other health issue. – Leaf Score
• Gas ovens provide a moister heat than electric ovens which have a dry heat, there are pros and cons to each type of heat depending on what you’re cooking.
• Gas is generally the better option in terms of overall carbon emissions. Burning natural gas produces heat more efficiently than electric heat sources. – Little Green Blog
• If you have a power cut you can still cook if you have a gas oven.
• Gas is normally cheaper than electricity.

*Defra Policy Brief: Improving the energy performance of domestic cooking products July 2008 – confusedaboutenergy.co.uk

So far it’s difficult to say whether gas or electric are the most cost-effective or eco-friendly ovens. Although gas ovens tend to be more expensive to buy, the ongoing costs are less, however the main thing to look at is energy efficiency. Electric ovens use less energy even though they can sometimes be less efficient.

Hobs: Gas, Electric or Induction?

It’s well worth considering an induction hob. Induction hobs have a lot of things going for them…

Induction hobs are the quickest to heat up. A good one takes around half the time to boil a pan of water than a ceramic hob.

Induction hobs are very efficient. They are low voltage and because the hob only heats the pan there is no wasted energy. The pan heats up quickly which also reduces the amount of energy wasted.

They are also good for safety as there is no direct heat on the hob, which is great if you have children.

Induction hobs are also easy to clean as they have a flat surface. It’s also rare for a pan to boil to over as they run by controllable heat, so you won’t have any sticky messes to clean up.

There are downsides to induction hobs, the major one being that you have to use specific pans that will allow the magnetic energy to pass into the metal and heat the pan up.

*Defra Policy Brief: Improving the energy performance of domestic cooking products July 2008 – confusedaboutenergy.co.uk

Is a Gas or Electric Oven The Most Eco-Friendly?

Induction hobs are the most energy efficient hob, and you should probably look into an electric oven as well. However this doesn’t take into account some of the alternatives to gas or electric ovens which I’ll look into in more detail below.

If cost is a major factor for you, gas is the cheapest to run and over the course of a year you’ll probably make some savings. This is only if you already have gas installed at home as the cost of gas installation could mean it takes years to make savings. Gas ovens are more energy efficient than electric but your consumption will be higher (I’m not sure I understand this!).

I would say that if you have a green energy supplier, then electric ovens and hobs are definitely the way to go. Also in the UK, gas is being phased out although as green policies in the UK change on an almost daily basis who knows?

Which are the Most Eco-Friendly Ovens in the UK?

The Ethical Consumer compared 45 different brands and when you filter the results to look at which is the most environmentally friendly the results are disappointing to say the least. Each company is scored out of 20 and it’s telling that the highest score is only 5, and only 15 of them have any score at all.

The Ethical Consumer website gives each company a score out of 20.

• The scoring is based on a set of 5 criteria. These are environment, people, politics, animals and product sustainability.
• Every company starts with a score of 14. Points are taken off if they get criticised in one of the categories.
• Plus points are awarded for product sustainability (e.g. the product is vegan) Or company ethos (e.g. the company is a co-operative).

Most Eco-Friendly Ovens in the UK

Miele appears to sell the most eco-friendly ovens and the most ethical ovens. Gorenje and Smeg are not far behind. The ethics of the companies scored much higher than their ‘green’ credentials.

Some Eco-Friendly Ovens To Consider

Eco-Friendly Oven Alternatives

Ovens are the most energy efficient when they are used to capacity. There’s no point switching the oven on if you’re only cooking one item. The same thing goes for hobs. Don’t use three rings if you can actually use stacked steaming pans to steam your vegetables using only one ring.

If you’re just reheating food a microwave is far more energy efficient than using the oven. If you’re only cooking a few items have you considered a toaster oven or an air fryer?

Microwave

“Microwaving is one of the cheapest and most energy-efficient cooking methods, using two-thirds less power than electric ovens – Cureton and Reed.” Microwaves can be used to heat up many things, but are certainly better at reheating food and liquids than an oven.

Toaster Oven

What is a toaster oven? It’s a small kitchen counter-top kitchen appliance that resembles a small oven. They normally have a removable wire rack and as the name suggests, is a cross between a toaster and an oven. They’re particularly good for cooking pizza as well as making toast and baking muffins and biscuits. They aren’t a good replacement for an oven but possibly worth looking at as an addition to an oven.

Microwave or Toaster Oven?

A microwave uses on average around 750-1100 watts. A toaster oven uses around 1200-1700 (EnergySavers).

If you want something hot now, and you don’t care much about how the food turns out other than being hot, then a microwave is the way to go. But if you want to imitate oven cooking, then a toaster oven is the way to go, heating food more slowly but also more evenly. – Treehugger

Air Fryer

I’ve heard of air fryers before, but this week, in one of the facebook groups I’ve joined, a whole load of people were singing the praises of air fryers and many claimed they hadn’t used their oven in months. I had to find out more!

What is an air fryer? “The air fryer is an electrical gadget that circulates superheated air around your food. If you’re cooking chips, for example, you only need about 1 tablespoon of oil for 1kg of sliced potatoes.” – Curries Some air fryers are also pressure cookers.

Most of the time when you read about air fryers you’ll read about cooking chips, just like in the above quote. However, air fryers can be used for all sorts of things. “From curries to tapas, air fryers can fry a variety of foods with much less fat and oil. Meat, fish, even desserts can all be cooked in this super-healthy way. Think coated chicken wings, salmon fillets with pesto, stir-fry prawns…” Unbelievably you can even cook a whole chicken or bake bread in an air fryer if you buy one with enough capacity.

Most air fryers come with an instruction booklet that will give you ideas of all the things you can use the air fryer for. For vegans in particular, apparently they are amazing for cooking tofu.

“Do air fryers consume a lot of electricity? Air fryers don’t consume a lot of electricity. They use energy efficiently and in comparison to an oven, they reduce cooking times by up to 25%, which of course, makes it possible for an air fryer to run for a shorter amount of time when cooking.” – KitchenSnitches

Oven Alternatives – Brands to Consider

Miele, Gorenje and Smeg are the best brands for microwaves, ethically and environmentally according to The Ethical Consumer. They don’t appear to have looked into the ethics of toaster oven and air fryer brands yet.

In the facebook group I’m in, the majority of people were praising Ninja Air Fryers. The only information I could find about them was that they don’t currently have a policy on toxic chemicals.

If I was investing in a new kitchen, I would definitely be looking at an Induction hob and a combined pressure cooker and air fryer. In many ways that would probably be enough for me as I live alone. They would also be perfectly adequate for small households of up to 4 people (especially if it’s 2 adults and 2 children). However I’m not sure I’m ready to completely give up on an oven yet, and I’d go for an electric oven too. If you’re trying to find eco-friendly ovens there are a lot of things to consider, always check out the energy efficiency rating before purchasing one.

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Prices and information correct at time of publishing.

Additional Sources
Why Buy An Induction Hob?
Induction Hobs. What, Why and Should I Buy?
Which is More Energy Efficient? Gas, Electric or Induction
Confused About Energy
Cooking Indoor