Cooking is fun and a hobby for most people. However, choosing specific cookware can have environmental and health consequences.
Generally, various cooking utensils in regular kitchens today are not sustainable enough to be included in one’s cooking routine. An example is using plastics as food storage containers, cutlery, or food wraps.
The use of plastics in kitchens is not environmentally friendly. Yet, it is an indispensable material in homes, especially plastic utensils, which has led to serious environmental and human health concerns.1
Sustainable cooking utensils are green alternatives to replace unhealthy cookware in your kitchen.
Sustainable Cooking Utensils
Do an upgrade to your kitchen with these 10 sustainable cookware.
#1. Carbon Steel Cookware
Teflon-coating pans and pots are widely used in kitchens because they are non-sticky. Despite Teflon being the first non-stick coating on pots and pans, it is easy to scratch and scrap with regular kitchen utensils.
An article published on Healthline.com claims that Teflon-coating cookware can be used safely for everyday cooking and may not have adverse health or environmental effects as long as temperatures do not exceed 500°F (260°C). At high temperatures, it may begin to disintegrate and release toxic fumes that may negatively impact the environment and may also directly affect human health.
According to a 2006 article published on Gale Academic OneFile, about 95% of Americans had detectable levels of Teflon-related chemicals in their blood.2
This proves non-stick coating on pans and pots may be environmentally damaging and unhealthy to some extent. A more sustainable option is to invest in eco-friendly cookware like stainless steel pans and pots.
Stainless steel pans and pots are available in kitchen supply stores and online at your favourite department store. Stainless steel and iron cast pans and pots can also be found in second-hand stores at affordable prices.
Learn more: 13 Best Zero-Waste Kitchen Products
#2. Organic Bamboo Utensil
Bamboo is biodegradable and is safe to use to make kitchen utensils. It’s a sustainable material that should replace plastic spoons and spatulas in your kitchen.
Frequent use of plastic spoons and spatulas can leave an unpleasant taste in your food. Plastic material under extreme heat is likely to melt, hence it starts to disintegrate in your food, which can lead to health issues.
Organic bamboo utensils are sustainable alternatives to plastic utensils. They are durable for kitchen use and remain lightweight utensils that can last for years in your kitchen.
However, not all organic bamboo utensils are made sustainably for kitchen use. To ensure you get the best sustainable product, always look out for bamboo utensils made with solid materials without glues or lacquers.
#3. Plastic-Free Sponges and Brushes
Cleaning is a common kitchen routine and it’s important to use sustainable cleaning items to keep cookware clean.
Generally, regular dish brushes and sponges found in most kitchens are made from plastics. Frequent use of plastic sponges and dish brushes can cause microplastics to end up in your food and our waterways.
To avoid this, opt for dish brushes and sponges that are 100% plant-based and biodegradable. Plastic-free sponges and dish brushes offer a better cleaning experience and they are safer to use than plastic brushes and sponges.
Learn more: 10 Ways to Create a Zero-Waste Kitchen
#4. Beeswax Food Wrap
Beeswax food wraps may not be on top of the list of sustainable cooking utensils but they are important for preserving and storing food.
Beeswax food wraps are environmentally safer to use than single-use food wraps. Single-use food wraps impact the environment by contaminating our waterways with plastic, which also affects marine life.3
Beeswax food wraps are sustainable and reusable to cover bowls and wrap food. They are made from cotton fabric coated in beeswax that keeps food fresh and protected.
#5. Stainless Food Storage Containers
An observational study on consumer preference performed through an online survey shows that reusable food storage containers are the preferred Food Contact Materials (FCM). About 1,170 Portuguese adults were involved in this online survey.
Their preference was stainless steel and glass food storage containers. Food safety was the most important factor considered for choosing stainless steel and glass food storage containers. The participants recognized the risk of food contamination with plastic food storage containers.4
Stainless steel food storage containers are safe to carry and store food. They are sustainable to use as lunch boxes for kids or to carry fresh fruits, salads, or cooked meals for travel.
#6. Reusable Straws
On average, about 8 billion tons of plastic materials, including drinking plastic straws end up in the oceans every year. Drinking plastic straws makes up a huge part of plastic debris found during beach clean-ups.5
In recent times, plastic straws have been banned in different cities to promote alternative drinking straws in the market.6 Stainless steel straws are more eco-friendly to use than bamboo straws, and some paper straws contain high levels of Forever Chemicals according to a recent study.7
On 6th November BBC News published an article (Plastic or paper? The truth about drinking straws) detailing how some paper straws can contain more forever chemicals than plastics. We suggest you read the article to learn more about this topic.
#7. PFAS-Free Soap and Cleaners
False advertising is earning our trust to purchase cleaning products that appear to make cleaning sustainable. Some cleaning products advertised these days are not 100% sustainable and contain PFAS (Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances).
If you are unsure about using a cleaning product due to concerns that it contains PFAS, you can use natural ingredients such as lemon juice and baking soda to clean your kitchen space. They are homemade natural cleaning products that are very effective and work perfectly fine.
Learn more: 10 Green Technology Examples in Homes
#8. Compost Bin
Composting technology has been accepted as a cost-effective method to reduce organic waste and generate nutrient-rich compost for gardens and farms. 8
A composting bin may not be on the top list of sustainable cooking utensils but is important in reducing food waste. A compost bin in the kitchen prevents food waste from being tossed into a trash can.
It’s a waste reduction process aimed at improving gardening with its nutrient-rich compost. The process of composting food and fruit scraps reduces the rate of greenhouse gas emissions.
It’s putting food scraps to good use rather than throwing them into the trash can, which may end up in landfills. Composting is better and protects the environment from greenhouse gas emissions while providing nutrient-rich compost to boost plant growth. Get a compost bin for the food scraps from your kitchen.
#9. Microplastic-Free Towels
Microfiber is used in various products such as sheets and cleaning cloths, they are tiny pieces of polyester and nylon found in microfiber cleaning cloths and are usually advertised as an eco-friendly alternative to single-use wipes and paper towels. But are microfiber cleaning cloths environmentally friendly?
Microfiber may look like a durable towel for cleaning surfaces in your kitchen and for cleaning dishes, but they are not 100% safe to use.
Use upcycled denim and cotton materials for cleaning. MEEMA kitchen towels are available options for kitchen cleaning that you can consider.
#10. Reusable Produce Bags
Perhaps not what you were expecting but reusable produce bags are parts of sustainable cooking utensils. Using these bags eliminates the need for single-use plastic bags that litter and pollute the environment.
Reusable produce bags are durable and sustainable for grocery shopping. They are easy to carry and are designed to keep fruits fresh. Reliable products of these bags are available in the market.
Conclusion
Transforming your kitchen into a greener space works with obtaining sustainable cookware. Making the switch to eco-friendly kitchen products protects the environment and guarantees healthy living.
Sources
- Umate S. K.: “Environmental Sustainability with Eco-friendly Kitchenware’s.” DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.10682080.
↩︎ - Rose Marie Williams: “Teflon makes life easy, but is it safe?.” ↩︎
- Yashwi Saini et al: “CONSUMER BEHAVIOUR ANALYSIS: SUSTAINABLE FOOD WRAPPING WITH BEESWAX.” ↩︎
- Joana Moura et al: “Consumers’ practices and safety perceptions regarding the use of materials for food preparation and storage: Analyses by age group.” ↩︎
- Lam Chang & Jully Tan: “An integrated sustainability assessment of drinking straws.” ↩︎
- BANNING PLASTIC STRAWS: THE BEGINNING
OF THE WAR AGAINST PLASTICS (PDF) by Marcela Romero Mosquera. https://lawpublications.barry.edu ↩︎ - Boisacq, P., De Keuster, M., Prinsen, E., Jeong, Y., Bervoets, L., Eens, M., … Groffen, T. (2023). Assessment of poly- and perfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in commercially available drinking straws using targeted and suspect screening approaches. Food Additives & Contaminants: Part A, 40(9), 1230–1241. ↩︎
- Quan Wang PhD et al: “Chapter 9 – Sustainable Composting and Its Environmental Implications.” ↩︎