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Greener Choices Home >
Green product watch: Cookware, TVs 9/09
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Green product watch: Cookware, TVs, and freezers
Here’s the latest news and advice on greener products, adapted from the September 2009 issue of Consumer Reports magazine.
“Green” cookware sets that measure up. Consumer Reports recently tested the performance of three so-called “green” nonstick cookware sets: Earth Pan, Starfrit, and GreenPan. All three made the CR Best Buy list. Unlike conventional nonstick cookware sets, the pans do not contain perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA)—a potentially harmful chemical—according to their manufacturers. It's not clear how much PFOA affects consumers. Our past tests of other nonstick cookware found the pans emitted very few PFOA emissions. Still, our experts say it’s sensible to take a few precautions. To compare cookware performance, check out Cookware sets that sizzle. You can also find out why You can't always judge a pan by its claims.
Improved energy efficiency for plasma TVs. The gap is shrinking between the energy use of plasma TVs and LCDs, according to Consumer Reports latest TV tests. Our testers found a negligible difference overall in energy used by comparably sized sets, while some of each type used more or less energy than the average sets. To compare energy costs between sets, check out the latest TV Ratings (available to subscribers).
Freezer energy savings come up short. The yellow EnergyGuide label you’ll find on many appliances is meant to reflect approximate energy usage based on manufacturers’ test data, and let you compare the energy consumption and operation costs between appliances. But Consumer Reports latest tests of freezers found that, on average, they used 17 percent more energy compared with their yellow EnergyGuide labels. One model, the Haier HUF138EA, used 70 percent more energy, when it was full as well as empty. To learn more, read Freezers: Energy savings are not a sure thing.
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