Buyer's guide to the most ethical electric kettles

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Best Buys as of March/April 2007

As our ratings are constantly updated, it is possible that company ratings on the ethiscore website may have changed since this report was written.

The EcoKettle is the best buy for electric kettles because it allows you to only boil the exact amount of water that you need thus saving energy.

Brand	Rating
Breville kettles	14
Bush kettles	14
Hinari kettles	14
Ecokettle kettles [S]	13.5
Dualit kettles	12
Haden kettles	12
Home-tek kettles	12
Russell Hobbs kettles	12
Morphy Richards kettles	11
Prestige kettles	11
De'Longhi kettles	10.5
Kenwood kettles	10.5
Krups kettles	10
Moulinex kettles	10
Rowenta kettles	10
Tefal kettles	10
Philips kettles	7
Cookworks kettles	5
Bosch kettles	4.5
Braun kettles	0

The ratings on this scorecard were last updated from our database at www.ethiscore.org on 22 May 2008. The higher the rating, the more ethical the brand.

Polly put the kettle on

We look at whether kettle companies are quick on the boil

Electric kettles powered by a green electricity supply represent the best environmental option when it comes to boiling water. However, electric kettles use nearly a third of all the energy a household uses for cooking; according to DEFRA "If everyone boiled only the water they needed to make a cup of tea instead of 'filling' the kettle every time, we could save enough electricity to run practically all the street lighting in the U.K."
The main problem with kettles is not their own inefficiency, it's the inefficiency of the user. So, if you're too lazy to measure a cup or check the gauge on the side of your kettle, the EcoKettle (made by Product Creation Ltd; for stockists see www.ecokettle.com 01273 494943) has been designed for you. It has an internal reservoir which holds a full capacity of water ready for use, while the measuring button allows any quantity to be released into the separate chamber for boiling.

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