End of gas cookers ‘in sight’ as electric hob prices fall

ECOS – Environmental Coalition on Standards, an NGO, commissioned the analysis of the price of 963 models of four ring hobs sold by popular online retailers in 21 European countries this April. When installation and lifetime running costs are factored in, induction cookers will be cheaper to buy and run in 15 of 21 European countries studied by 2026, the analysis forecasts. EU rules on the efficiency of cooking appliances are scheduled to get stronger in 2026.

The research found that gas hobs cost €251 on average, while infrared hobs were €266 on average. The average induction hob cost €413, but in two thirds (14 of the 21) of countries studied, some induction models were found on sale at prices below the average national gas hob price.

There has been a dramatic switch from gas to electric cooker sales in the Netherlands, the only country for which data was made available. Sales of home electric cookers overtook gas cookers by 2016 and were selling four times as fast by 2020, according to national hob sales data gathered by IKEA. Sales of gas cookers in 2020 were one third of the level during the first decade of 2000. One forecast puts induction cooking growth at a less dramatic 5.6% per year to 2032.

Gas cooking comes with considerable pollution and safety problems. Indoor air pollution regularly exceeded outdoor limits in a recent Dutch study of 250 kitchens across seven European countries. Home gas cookers are responsible for 700,000 cases of childhood asthma diagnosed by a doctor in Europe, while children in homes that cook on gas are 42% more likely to self-report asthma, a separate study by the same researchers found. UK government statistics show that there is a gas-related fire or explosion nearly every day, amounting to 669 gas fires and explosions that resulted in a casualty and/or a fatality over a 7 year period.

Combustion emissions, gas leaks and longer cooking times make gas cookers a significant source of climate pollution compared to electric cookers. A typical gas hob creates over three times more climate emissions than a typical electric hob, the ECOS-commissioned study estimates. Methane leaks within European kitchens could amount to up to 4.2 million metric tonnes of CO2 equivalent annually, or 2.4 million more cars on the road, modelling in the report estimates.

The report, The Future of Cooking in Europe, highlights recent research claiming that the gas industry successfully applied tobacco industry tactics to downplay research linking gas stove emissions with poor respiratory health. Although people spend most of the time indoors, officials have yet to set indoor air quality standards. This has not stopped class action lawsuits being filed against appliance brands like Samsung, General Electric (Haier) and Whirlpool, all of which claim manufacturers knew about the harmful emissions from their gas appliances but did not warn their customers.

There are fewer climate and safety problems for electric cookers, which researchers say are around 3 times better at delivering heat to food. The report cites a string of professional chefs that have praised electric cookers, with one saying they cut cleaning times “from 24 minutes to 21 seconds”.

Last March, a Dutch firm that had been making gas cookers for 70 years became the first to focus entirely on electric stoves. IKEA stopped selling gas hobs in the Netherlands on 1 January, saying “we must dare to make choices like these”.

ECOS Programme Manager Marco Grippa said: “Times are changing and people are waking up to the pollution, dirt and inefficiency of gas compared to modern induction cookers. In recent years, the production of newer induction technology has grown and prices have fallen. With cash savings to be made across much of Europe now or in the coming years, the end is clearly in sight for gas cookers.”

Notes to editor:

[1] The Future of Cooking in Europe report is available here.