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COOK WITH A SOLAR OVEN

solar ovens

Cooking with a solar oven is an energy-efficient, pollution-free way to help fight global warming and take advantage of nature's free, inexhaustible energy supply.

As the world's population increases and nonrenewable sources of energy for cooking dwindle (e.g., firewood in Asia and Africa) or seriously damage the ozone layer (e.g., fossil fuels), the need to adopt clean, renewable energy sources and devices that utilize these sources grows ever more critical. Solar ovens are one answer.

Home appliances are the world's fastest growing consumers of energy, second only to automobiles. Items such as stoves, ovens, and refrigerators account for 30 percent of electricity use in industrial countries and 12 percent of their greenhouse gas emissions. In the United States, an estimated 5 percent of its fossil fuel consumption is dedicated to the cooking and distribution of food. A portion of that energy expenditure could be eliminated by using solar ovens.

In developing countries, greenhouse gas emissions from cooking originate from sources other than fossil fuel, especially fuel wood. In recent years, several organizations have been setting up solar ovens for families in Africa, Asia, Mexico, and Central and South America, where people have long depended on the now rapidly vanishing firewood supply. Solar power cooking has significantly improved the lives of tens of thousands of people, allowing them to not only prepare nutritious food for their families but to purify drinking water, treat infectious medical waste, and preserve (dry) food. Yet many, many more solar ovens are needed in these countries to prevent further destruction of remaining forests, reduce pollution, and support family health.

The massive contribution to global warming by the United States and other major energy-consuming nations highlights the need for pollution-free alternatives to ozone-depleting technology. Solar ovens are just one part of the alternative energy picture, but one that is accessible to a great majority of people.

A reliable solar oven can be built from everyday materials in just a few hours or purchased ready made. Solar ovens can be used to prepare anything that can be made in a conventional oven or stove — from baked bread to steamed vegetables to roasted meat. Solar ovens allow you to do it all, without contributing to global warming or heating up the kitchen and placing additional demands on cooling systems. Nearly 75 percent of US households prepare at least one hot meal per day; one-third prepare two or more, according to the Residential Energy Consumption Survey. You can make some of those meals in a solar oven. Are you ready to let the sun shine in?

Be the first on your block to own and use a solar oven, help reduce greenhouse gases, and get out of that hot kitchen! Here are some ways to obtain and enjoy your solar oven:

  • Build your own solar oven using ordinary materials — boxes, aluminum foil, black paint — in just a few hours for less than the cost of a movie ticket. This is a great project for children and the whole family. Free solar cooking plans and detailed instructions are available on the Internet for a broad variety of solar oven designs. Your first step to solar power is just one click away.
  • Get a ready-made solar oven from a nonprofit organization, such as the Solar Oven Society or Solar Household Energy, or from solar cooking catalogs or Global Sun Ovens that provide solar ovens to developing countries.
  • Organize a group solar oven building event. This is a good activity for a scout group, church group, or as a class project. You can use the plans you get free from the Internet. Once the ovens are built, have a cookout to celebrate!
  • Hold a solar oven cookout. Invite family, friends, and neighbors. This is a wonderful way to introduce others to the benefits of solar cooking.
  • Take your solar oven on camping and hiking trips and cook without the need for fire or propane. Several types of solar ovens are very light and portable for such purposes.
  • Interact with others who are involved with solar ovens and solar cooking. A Solar Cooking Directory of individuals and organizations in both the United States and countries around the world is available online. You can learn more about solar cooking plus ways to make solar ovens available to families in developing countries.

Why depend on fossil fuels when you can harness the clean, free energy of the sun. Solar ovens are a safe, pollution-free alternative to conventional ovens and stoves. You can make one work for you and help preserve the integrity of the planet. Bon appetit!