KITCHEN APPLIANCES

This 2004 briefing from the Rocky Mountain Institute (RMI) provides guidance on reducing the energy and environmental impacts of kitchen appliances and food consumption. It details the efficiency gains in refrigerators and freezers, compares various cooking technologies and habits, and addresses the reduction of food-related waste in landfills.

• Food choices and sourcing significantly impact energy use and carbon emissions. Foods derived from local or regional sources require four to seventeen times less fuel for transport and produce four to seventeen times less carbon dioxide than nationally distributed foods. Conversely, imported foods use four times as much energy and cause four times as much carbon dioxide emissions as domestic foods.
• Refrigerator technology has improved significantly, with energy use dropping by over 60 percent in the twenty years preceding the report. In 2004, Energy Star standards improved efficiency by 15 percent over 2001 levels. Older models are notably inefficient; those predating 1993 can cost up to $140 per year in electricity, while models from 1993-2001 may cost $60 per year (based on $0.083 per kWh).
• Specific refrigerator features and maintenance affect energy consumption. Side-by-side models use roughly 10 percent more energy than freezer-on-top models, and automatic icemakers increase energy use by 10 to 20 percent. Maintenance steps such as setting the main compartment between 36°F and 40°F can prevent waste, as setting the unit 10°F colder than recommended can increase energy use by 25 percent. Manual defrost freezers consume 35–40 percent less electricity than automatic-defrost models, and chest freezers are 10–25 percent more efficient than upright models.
• Cooking habits have a greater impact on energy savings than appliance technology. Gas appliances generally cost less than half as much to operate as electric ones if they use electric ignition instead of pilot lights; eliminating pilot lights on new gas ranges saved 40–50 percent of their energy. Among stovetops, halogen and induction elements are more efficient (80 percent) than standard coil elements (70 percent).
• Using alternative cooking appliances can drastically reduce energy use compared to conventional ovens. Pressure cookers can cut energy use by 50–75 percent, and microwave ovens use up to two-thirds less electricity than conventional electric ovens. Conventional ovens are inherently inefficient, with tests indicating only about 6 percent of energy output is absorbed by the food.
• Food and packaging waste in U.S. landfills is substantial. In 2001, food scraps accounted for 26 million tons of waste, while food packaging materials like glass and plastic added another 38 million tons. Recycling rates for these materials are low, with only about 21 percent of glass bottles and 36 percent of plastic bottles being recycled in the United States.

APA

Goorskey, S., Smith, A., & Wang, K. (2004). KITCHEN APPLIANCES. RMI. https://rmi.org/app/uploads/2017/05/RMI_Document_Repository_Public-Reprts_HEB8KitchenApps.pdf

Chicago

Goorskey, Sarah, Andy Smith, and Katherine Wang. KITCHEN APPLIANCES. RMI, 2004. https://rmi.org/app/uploads/2017/05/RMI_Document_Repository_Public-Reprts_HEB8KitchenApps.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Goorskey |first1=Sarah |last2=Smith |first2=Andy |last3=Wang |first3=Katherine |title=KITCHEN APPLIANCES |publisher=RMI |date=2004 |url=https://rmi.org/app/uploads/2017/05/RMI_Document_Repository_Public-Reprts_HEB8KitchenApps.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{goorskey2004kitchen, author = {Goorskey, Sarah and Smith, Andy and Wang, Katherine}, title = {{KITCHEN APPLIANCES}}, institution = {RMI}, year = {2004}, url = {https://rmi.org/app/uploads/2017/05/RMI_Document_Repository_Public-Reprts_HEB8KitchenApps.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }