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Published on March 20, 2008

A recent survey by global kitchenware and home-appliances manufacturer Electrolux discovered that urban consumers in Asia were using the kitchen for entertaining, such as for parties and family meetings.

The survey, entitled "Food and Dining Habits", was conducted in cooperation with Reader's Digest magazine in nine major Asian countries. It involved 360,000 respondents.

It found that 40 per cent of Thais thought the kitchen was a place where people could be happy and 20 per cent considered it a place for families to "catch up". It is also regarded as a place for other activities, such as children doing their homework.

Thailand was ranked second behind India for believing in the importance of having the latest kitchen technology at home.

Learning from the survey, Electrolux said kitchenware should not only facilitate cooking, but also support other activities. Tonghathai Kuvanont, marketing director and category director for washing machines and refrigerators in Southeast Asia, said the information would be used in developing new models for launch this year.

In conducting the survey, Electrolux asked Asian city dwellers 36 questions in questionnaires distributed with the magazine, on subjects ranging from food consumption, purchasing and preparation to kitchen styles. The nine countries in the survey were China, India, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Singapore, the Philippines, Vietnam and Thailand.

Thailand had the highest number of respondents favouring home entertainment. Seventy-three per cent of 9,000 Thai respondents said they liked entertaining at home once in a while. However, their families came first and their friends second.

Ninety-six per cent of Thais regarded cooking as a necessary skill, placing it second to the Philippines on this question. However, Thais led the rest, with 52 per cent saying they prepared menus every week.

In choosing cooking appliances, 59 per cent said features came first, ease of use followed with 26 per cent and the rest opted for safety.

Nitida Asawanipont

The Nation