U.S. Gas Stove 'Ban' Becomes A Tool In Rightist Culture War

Over the past couple of years, food-related matters have become an ever-bigger part of the political culture wars, and the latest one to enter the fray is gas stoves.

Photo Insert: Gas stoves have become the new political frying pan of the right to cook the Biden administration.

The remarks from Consumer Product Safety Commission Commissioner Richard Trumka Jr, who told Bloomberg that "any option" was on the table regarding gas stoves and that “products that can't be made safe can be banned," have become the new political cudgel from the right to hit the Biden administration over the head.

Trumka later clarified his remarks and said no ban was being considered, but by then, it didn't matter as gas stoves were the latest fodder in a new culture war, Michael Wolf reported for The Spoon newsletter.

While there is little chance we'll ever see an outright ban on gas stoves at the federal level, we are already seeing some restrictions being put in place at the state and city level.

Berkeley started it all in 2019, followed by San Francisco and LA, and the state of California is looking to ban gas hookups to new builds by 2030. More recently, states like Washington have passed legislation banning gas in commercial buildings set to kick in this year, Wolf added.

Somewhat lost in the frenzied debate is the momentum we've seen for induction cooking over the past couple of years.

The technology, which a number of chefs have started to see as superior to that of gas, has become more mainstream in the US in the past couple of years, and forecasts have it continuing to outpace the growth of gas or coiled-electric cooktops.

The biggest hurdle for induction cooking today is price. On average, a new induction stove still costs more than a gas or coiled electric stove and costs even more if a consumer has to swap out their cookware for induction-compatible pots and pans.

The good news is many pans sold today come induction compatible, so many consumers may already be equipped to start cooking with induction.

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