Appliances and Their Effect on Food Buying

By Fern E. Hunt

Mm sk any cook, 'What effect do your other countries chilled storage space for MM kitchen appliances have on your foods is not available in the marketplace #■ food-buying decisions?" The an- or home, and food shopping is a daily swer you get will likely be, "well, none." chore. If you asked further, ''Without a refrigerator, how would you manage?" the Affordable refrigerators and freezers for answer would show that availability of at homes have had more to do with changes least one common appliance greatly af- in quality, availability of out-of-season fects food buying practices. Virtually all items, fornis of food eaten, and shopping U.S. households (99.9 percent) have and practices than with total amounts of use a refrigerator. Ninety percent of re- foods consumed. However, with availabil- frigerators sold in 1981 were combination ity of food freezers and commercially fro- refrigerator-freezers. About 45 percent zen foods, civilian consumption of com- of households in the Nation have a sepa- mercially frozen fruit — exclusive of cit- rate food freezer. And commercial proc- rus juices — doubled from 1940 to 1979 essing and freezing of foods has bur- (from 1.28 to 2.57 lb. per person). The geoned into a thriving segment of the increase was due primarily to increased food industry within the past 25 years. consumption of commercially frozen strawberries. In the same period, use of Perishable foods may be purchased citrus juices on a single strength basis in- almost the year round — strawberries, creased from 5.12 to 33.37 lb. per per- lettuce, oysters, and eggs, to name a son per year — an increase of 650 few — because refrigerated equipment is percent. avaüable to transport the food over long distances, store it in warehouses and dis- Consumption of commercially frozen play it in retail stores. Further, after pur- vegetables increased from 2.2 lb. per chase the food may be held safely in the person in 1940 to 23.4 lb. in 1979. At home refrigerator or freezer for a rea- the same time total consumption of com- sonable time with little if any spoilage mercially produced vegetables (fresh, and with little or no fear of foodbome ill- canned and frozen) increased from 186.9 nesses. So shoppers in the United States to 233.6 lb, per person. There was a may buy supplies for a week or more at gradual change from home-produced to a time and take advantage of special commercially produced items rather than sales to stock up on foods. In many consumption of greater quantities of

Fern E. Hunt is Professor of Home Equipment, School of Home Economics and Ohio Agricultural Research and Development Center. The Ohio State Universiiy, Columbus,

270 Shoppers with home freezers can take advantage of store specials and hold foods for a reasonable time with little H any spoifage or fear of foodborne iffnesses.

271 vegetables per person. With modem spe= nect one as frozen food stocks dwindle cialized agriculture, even many farm during the year. households buy commercially produced foods for much of their food needs. Determinants of needs for refrigerator- freezer and separate freezer space in- A further change in food choices coming clude marketing habits of the household, with availability of frozen food storage age and health of family members, space in households is the whole array of amount of entertaining, and home food frozen desserts and of ready-to-cook or storage practices. Families that freeze heat-and-eat specialty items and dinners. much of their own fruit, vegetables, and Such foods are a boon particularly to meat may need 5 to 6 cubic feet of freez- people who must prepare meals in a hur- er space per person in separate food ry, people who do not like to cook or freezers, while 3 to 4 cubic feet per per- who lack cooking skills, and to elderly son will provide ample storage space for and handicapped people living indepen- most families. dently. Cooking Appliances — Currently available Capacity of household refrigerators and cooking appliances might be classified refrigerator-freezer combinations on to- into two groups: 1) Those that promise day's market varies from 10.0 to 27.8 to affect use of time and/or energy — cubic feet. Freezer space is as small as pennitting quick meal preparation either 1.2 cubic feet in the smaller refrigerators by rapid cooking or by long, slow, un- and as large as 10.8 cubic feet in the attended cooking with conservation of largest refrigerator-freezer combinations. energy, and 2) Those that satisfy special interests such as gourmet, outdoors, Refrigerator, Freezer Needs nostalgia, and natural food enthusiasts. Recommendations for refrigerator sizes Such appliances as microwave ovens, are based on number of people in the convection ovens, pressure saucepans, household, A minimum of 6 (and prefer- and slow cookers might be listed in the ably 8) cubic feet has been suggested for first group. Food smokers and dehydra- 2 people plus one cubic foot for each tors might fall into the second. additional person in the household. Thus for a household of 2 adults and 2 chil- Portables — Some small or portable dren, ininimum recommended capacity cooking appliances have the potential to would be 8 cubic feet; the preferred be a factor in consumer decisions in the space would be at least 10 cubic feet. If food marketplace. For example, appli- a separate food freezer is not available, 2 ances that cook foods by moist heat cubic feet of freezer space in the re- methods — such as a pressure saucepan frigerator has been suggested per per- or a slow cooker — cook less tender son. Separate freezers can be purchased cuts of meat satisfactorily with minimum with capacities fr'om 5.2 to 28.0 cubic energy inputs compared to cooking them feet. Some experts suggest that where in a covered pan in the range oven. But very large amounts of freezer space may intended use, consumer knowledge of be required, a household would be wise meats, financial resources, and tastes will to have two smaller freezers and discon- be the major determinants of the choice of type or cut of meat rather than avail-

272 ability of a particular cooking appliance. types — is an inefficient way to cook food. Only 6 to 14 percent of the energy One of the least energy intensive and used in a range oven goes into the food. quickest ways of cooking food by moist Microwave ovens offer a more energy heat is in a pressure saucepan. The heat efficient way to cook foods normally penetrates food quickly at the high tem- cooked in an oven, and with skill excel- perature and pressure, and the cooker is lent meals can be produced in the appli- effective for foods that ordinarily require ance. Generally about 50 percent of the a long time to tenderize. It works well in energy used goes into the food. In pres- softening tough connective tissue found ently available appliances, cakes, pies, in less tender cuts of meat. With the and other baked products are generally pressure saucepan, some foods cook in less acceptable in a microwave oven than as little as a fourth of the time required in a conventional oven, even with com- in a regular saucepan and as quickly as in binations of microwave and conventional a microwave oven. A microwave oven oven cooking. Microwave ovens are now will do more kinds of cooking than the owned by about one-fourth of U.S. pressure saucepan, but the pressure households. According to a recent nation- cooker currently has the advantage in wide Merchandising study (1982), micro- both purchase price and cost of opera- wave oven owTiers surveyed used the tion. Pressure saucepans come in 2V2-, appliance 44 percent of the time for 4-, and 6-quart capacities. cooking regular meals; 39 percent of the usage was for reheating foods; and 16 Types of Ovens on Market percent, for simple defrosting. Changes in recent years in oven design and types of ovens available on the appli- Convection Ovens — Forced convection ance market have largely reflected ovens are theoretically more efficient changes in uses of time by family mem- than traditional types of ovens. Foods bers (particularly women), convenience should heat faster in forced movement of and desired lifestyle factors, energy con- hot air than with the natural convection cerns, and advances in the food industry. in ovens. Countertop convection ovens Table model (or counter-top) ovens have have not achieved the market success of flourished in the 1970's because of needs microwave ovens, but they do offer an to heat or cook small quantities of food alternative to heating up a full-size range and concern about amounts of energy oven for oven-cooking jobs. Sales in one used in small ovens versus full-size range year have never surpassed the half- ovens. Development of frozen pre- million mark. Price differences depend cooked, brown-and-serve and heat-and- primarily on types of controls and auto- serve food items has gone hand-in-glove matic features. with innovations in cooking appliances and vice versa. Many of these foods are Recommended temperature settings for purposely marketed with containers in baking in a forced convection oven are which the food may be cooked or heated 25° to 50° F lower and cooking times are and which fit well into small ovens. shorter than for an oven with natural heat distribution; therefore energ>^ usage Use of conventional types of ovens — should be lower with the convection range and table model or portable oven. In a study of four different brands

273 and styles of countertop forced convec- in processing and refrigerated storage is tion ovens, a countertop regular oven of unnecessary afterward. Also, storage a corresponding size, and a 30-inch range space requirements and shipping weight oven, the average energy use in counter- are low. top forced convection ovens was signifi- cantly less than in the electric range Several models of dehydrators with oven. But the table model regular oven temperature controls and forced air circu- (without forced convection) required the lation to hasten drying have appeared on least energy of all for cooking jobs. Fur- the market. In addition, some forced ther, one of the table model forced con- convection ovens are designed with convection ovens used as much energy as trols to provide temperatures of 150° F the large oven in the electric range for or below (suitably low for satisfactory baking jobs. Baked products from all drying of food), and some manufacturers ovens were similar in eating quality offer accessory kits and instructions for characteristics, but top browning was dehydrating foods in their ovens. Good more uneven in the forced convection dehydrators may be homemade as well. ovens than in ovens with natural circula- Construction of homemade dryers re- tion of heat. quires some carpentry skills and an in- vestment for materials and parts. In Dehydrators and Smokers commercially made drying equipment for Sales of commercially manufactured food home use, only relatively small quantities dehydrators and smokers for home use of food — usually less than 10 pounds — have not reached levels high enough to can be dehydrated at one time. That be noted in 1982 annual statistical mar- could be a disadvantage for a household keting reports for the appliance industry. wanting to preserve large quantities of Impact on the food market caused by use food. of such equipment is likely to be minor, if perceptible. People who must buy the Smoking — As it is currently done, foods they dehydrate or préservée by smoking is more a way of enliancing fla- smoking will not usually find it cost effec- vor of foods and a method of cooking tive. Further, relatively few people wiH than a method of food preservation. In want to take the time and trouble neces- smoker-cookers the material deposited sary to cure meat before smoking or to on surfaces of food during smoking con- sulfur fruits and blanch vegetables before tains formaldehyde and phenols among drying in order to preser\^e them. many other chemical components. For- maldehyde and phenols are bacteriostatic, There are several reasons for interest in and creosols produce smoked flavor. home dehydration of foods — for example, convenience for hikers and other Foods smoked without a high salt cure sports people in transporting and storing generally will keep for only a short time dried products, nutritious natural snacks, unless refrigerated. How long they keep relatively low energy use in processing, depends upon degree of curing, amount and storage without use of energy re- of dehydration and smoking, and the sources. Dehydrating foods is less costly storage temperature. Signs of spoilage than some other means of food preserva- include development of surface molds, tion, because intense heat is not required sour taste or smell of ammonia, and ran-

274 cid flavor. Commercially made smoke quired for heat to reach the center of a ovens may be designed to smoke only or cylindrical can. Shelf life of the food is 1 to smoke-cook and roast, barbecue, to 2 years at room temperature. A draw- steam and/or shish kebab. Various styles back to the use of pouches is the rela- are available, some with gas heat and tively high cost in comparison to cans. some with electric. An advantage of the commercial smoke oven is portability. A Dehydrated Foods — Shelf life of dehy- disadvantage is the small usable capacity. drated foods depends to a large extent upon storage conditions. Since moisture Shelf Life of Foods content is very low — 2 percent to 10 Commercially canned food is sterilized percent of the original product weight — during canning, so problems with micro- the foods absorb moisture in a humid at- bial spoilage are extremely rare if the can mosphere. In a moisture-tight container remains undamaged. Metal containers for which excludes light and at room commercially canned foods are designed temperature or cooler, many dehydrated with inside coatings to resist chemical foods have a shelf life of up to 2 years. reactions between the can and its con- The lower the moisture content, the tents and to have an unlimited shelf life. longer will be the shelf life at any Two years is considered the norm for temperature. Oxidative deterioration can storage. Some foods are more corrosive occur in dried foods. Since plastic bags than others, and the rate of the reaction may not completely exclude oxygen, between can and food is affected by tem- glass or metal containers are better for perature — the higher the temperature, dried food storage. the faster the deterioration. Corrosive- ness of the foods depends upon their Frozen Foods — When temperatures in acidity. Acidic foods such as fruits, fireezer storage space are maintained at juices, and pickles are the most corrosive 0° F or below and packaging materials and have the shortest shelf life. Low acid are moisture-vapor proof, many foods foods — such as vegetables, meats, and could be stored indefinitely with little or fish — generally keep well. Ideal storage no deterioration in eating quality. But conditions for canned foods include cool, storage of frozen fruits and vegetables but not fireezing, temperatures and a dry beyond the next growing season is poor environment to prevent rust firom the management of expensive storage space. outside. Also, ground meats and foods containing fats tend to develop rancid flavors if A new type of package for processed stored longer than 3 to 6 months. The food is the retortable pouch, a flexible freezer manual and the local county home package made of two layers of film with a economics extension agent are good layer of foil sandwiched between. The sources of information on recommended package is flatter than cans and the food storage times for frozen foods. is sterilized in a shorter time than is re-

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