 Freshness and variety of food have long been recognized as basic components of a healthy diet in China. However, within the emerging middle classes, longer working hours and time spent commuting means there is precious little space for the preparation of food. With the increasing affluence in China, people on average were consuming between 25 and 100% more fat on a daily basis in 2002 than they were in 1982. As a consequence, the World Health Organization estimates that over the next decade, China is set to lose a massive US$ 558 billion in national income as a result of diabetes, heart disease and strokes caused by unhealthy eating and stressful lifestyles.
Increasingly unhealthy diets and lifestyles
Philips Design’s extensive investigation into local eating trends, lifestyle changes, attitudes to food and cooking, life/work balance, typical kitchen environments, demographic developments and so on, revealed some important discoveries. For example, there is a strong belief in the importance of having a balanced meal that contains protein, vegetables and a staple such as rice. Organic food is becoming increasingly popular, while it also became clear that cross-over cultural trends are influencing traditional cooking. And some of the most pressing issues related to lifestyle patterns are amongst the emerging middle classes, a group that increasingly recognizes the links between diet, health and lifestyle.
Against this background of increasingly unhealthy diets and lifestyles in emerging Asian economies Philips developed a compact electric steam cooking unit that allows not only rice but also other dishes to be prepared easily (whereby lowering the threshold to home cooking) and healthily (through retention of vitamins and other important constituents).
Time conscious users who demand variety
Although the core function is still rice focused, the cooker has the capacity to cook around 30 different menus. “Light is used as the guiding element to help the users through each step,” says Shaon Sengupta, Senior Interaction Designer. “Chameleon remembers user preference – for example, the last used menu and its variety is automatically highlighted for the next use. We also maintained a minimum step to start cooking process – within a reasonable time, the display will automatically go the next step guidance – users do not have to repeatedly press the ‘OK’ key to go to the next step. And the preset function lets you have steaming rice or hot bowl of soup as soon as you enter home after a long day’s work.”
Easy-to-use, flexible solutions
“Chamelon is a positive step toward revitalizing traditional cooking and stimulating healthier cooking practices,” says Shaon. “It accommodates faster and more convenient ways of cooking a wide range of foods that preserve the original nutritional content as much as possible. Most importantly, it brings the pleasure back to cooking in a group of users who otherwise no longer have the time to prepare the kind of healthy meals they like to enjoy.”
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