Global Kitchens 2019: The Kitchen is the Heart of the Home

Global Kitchens 2019 – The latest global trend report from Cosentino is here.

The Silestone Institute has researched and produced its second Global Kitchens study. ‘The Domestic Kitchen in the Globalisation Era’ focuses on the role of the kitchen in the home. Cosentino has been awarded with Bronze Stevie Award 2019 for Communications Research in the category of Communications or PR Campaign/Program of the Year.

The study worked with 23 experts on all things kitchens including; chefs, architects, interior designers, nutritionists, sociologists, food historians and influencers. The report also includes consumer opinions from eight countries, each with its own vibrant, distinct kitchen and dining cultures. The study centres around the idea that the kitchen is the heart of the home. As such, it is the one interior space that truly represents the social changes taking place worldwide.

Global Kitchens 2019 key findings:

The kitchen offers the opportunity to contribute to sustainability and the UK leads the way with 72.2% of respondents (above a global average of 52%) taking their own bags when shopping and prioritising products with less packaging.
Confirming that the kitchen is truly a multi-functional space at the heart of the home, the Global Kitchens study reveals that the UK has the highest number of participants who use their kitchen for other activities other than cooking and eating – 34.3% (above a global average of 17.4%).
The UK is above the global average when it comes to reducing the consumption of processed foods. 45.5% (above the average of 41.4%). We are more aware than ever of where our food comes from and this has a huge influence on how and what we cook.
Keeping up with the trend for a smart home, 54.7% of respondents worldwide already use their smartphones to interact with or control household devices such as TVs (16.1%), alarms and security systems (14.8%), heating (8.4%), home appliances (7.9%) and lights (7.5%).
When it comes to planning a new kitchen, 62.5% of participants overall prioritise functionality and making the most of the space over design, quality and cost savings.
The Global Kitchens study confirms that social media is enabling us to discover new dishes and recipes from other cultures. For 20.9% of global respondents, it’s the main reason why they engage with it. While for 16.3%, it’s their main method of finding out about exciting new restaurants.

Conclusions

In conclusion, the study has found that the kitchen is regaining its central role in the home around the world. Kitchens don’t necessarily look like kitchens anymore, as the trend for a more comfortable space takes shape. Social networks take the lead over home automation and smart devices. This in turn is leading to the demise of recipes being handed down in person, from generation to generation, as we look to the online world for cooking inspiration.

The UK is certainly ahead in terms of eating a healthy diet and being conscious of how we shop, reducing plastic waste. In the UK, we are also utilising the kitchen space for a variety of tasks and activities within the home. This is reflected by the rise of open and broken plan kitchen design.