Induction: not magic. Just very, very clever.
Over 100 delegates attended the CESA Induction Cooking Forum on 10th June 2011 at the Park Lane Hotel, London. They were treated to presentations from heavyweight speakers including Lucy Johnson of DEFRA, Al-Karim Govindji of The Carbon Trust and Hayden Groves, executive chef of Lloyds of London. They also had the opportunity to see demonstrations of the technology from nine leading suppliers. Forum Chair Bev Puxley MBA, FIH, FCFA provided expert comment as well as strict time keeping – aided by his trusty glass-and-spoon gavel.
The Induction Cooking Forum was organised by CESA, the Catering Equipment Suppliers Association, in association with the British Hospitality Association (BHA) and Caterer & Hotelkeeper magazine.
Opening speaker Lucy Johnson’s work on the Sustainable Energy Using Products policy allowed her to give the Forum a comprehensive overview of DEFRA’s approach to the Ecodesign and Energy Labelling directives. Hailing energy efficiency as the UK’s “biggest energy resource,” she underlined the importance of induction cooking equipment within the foodservice sector – DEFRA’s own studies suggest that it offers potential energy savings of from 50% to 86% in the commercial kitchen.
Hayden Groves left delegates in no doubt about his passion for induction cooking. The Lloyds building has four very different catering outlets – a cafe, staff canteen, directors dining and wine bar. All use induction in a variety of formats: plug and play counter top units, which are also ideal for theatre cooking front of house, hard-wired drop ins and a suite in the main kitchen. For him induction offers a huge range of benefits, including flexibility, power, accuracy and ease of cleaning. “It’s faster than gas and accuracy is incredible,” he said. “The technology can reduce a vigorous boil to a gentle roll very precisely and almost instantly.” The equipment has been very reliable in the year since it has been installed, he added, and another benefit is that the induction hobs both improved the working environment and reduced extraction costs significantly. “It’s much cooler working with induction,” he explained. “We used to have the air con on at 15C, these days it’s 21C.”
Induction cooking offers caterers the opportunity to innovate to reduce energy costs, according to Al-Karim Govindji, Technology Acceleration Manager with the Carbon Trust. One of the Trust’s key findings has been that best practice can deliver huge energy savings – and that the catering industry is lagging behind. More needs to be done to encourage foodservice professionals to invest in energy saving technologies, from low energy lights to heat exchangers to induction hobs. He regretted the serious lack of data on energy consumption within the catering sector and he called on the market to think about innovation in cooking.
As Chair of the CESA Induction Equipment Group, Steve Hobbs was well placed to give an overview of the technology and to ‘bust a few myths’. His presentation covered the technology’s history, how it works, its benefits and its future. Far from being ‘new’, induction was discovered by Michael Faraday in the 1840s and, Hobbs emphasised, despite appearances the process is not magic, it is basic physics. When it was first introduced to the catering sector, in the 1970s and 1980s, induction had the reputation for being expensive and unreliable. The technology has improved, costs are dropping and these days reliability is no longer an issue. As for the future, the technology is already available for a huge range of applications, from plug and play countertop units to production suites – induction equipment will get smaller, lighter, more powerful, less expensive. And as chefs and designers develop new food and kitchen concepts, induction manufacturers are in a position to develop products to meet their needs.
Once you chosen your induction hob don’t leave choosing your cookware to the last minute. That was the warning from the Forum’s final speaker, Maurits Demeyere, senior president of Demeyere Cookware. He has been involved in developing induction cookware since the 1970s and was able to give the Forum a complete survey of the pros and cons of the various choices available. For example, magnetic (18/0) stainless steel may be perfect for fast boiling of water, but it can be a bad cooking choice, as it can lead to product sticking or burning. “You can have a fantastic induction unit, but without the right cookware you won’t get the best performance,” he said. The key is speed with even heat distribution, for both water and food.
Drawing the Forum to a close, CESA director Keith Warren spoke of the “significant opportunities” that the Forum had highlighted which, he said, “Go way beyond energy saving: functionality, space saving, a credible alternative to gas plus, as Lucy Johnson has said, an ‘opportunity to do our bit.’ Now that the technology is available it is up to consultants, specifiers and dealers to recommend it and operators to use it.”
Headline Induction Benefits
- 90% energy efficient (compared to 50 – 60% for gas or electric)
- Fast
- Safe
- Easy to clean
- Controllability
- Reliable
- Affordable
Induction Technologies at the Forum
Charvet’s range of heavy-duty induction models is manufactured in France. Remotely positioned generators allow hobs to be placed directly over the oven, while the company’s Extend Concept uses modular components to offer chefs a way to make a statement about their kitchen at an affordable price.
Exclusive Ranges, in collaboration with Menu System, showed the slide control, pan detection, patented full coverage hob. The latest Menu System development is Net Comfort, allowing operators to link to the factory online to see how their range is performing and identify any service issues.
Lincat demonstrated its brand new portable countertop induction hob. Its low profile design includes features such as twin cooking zones with variable power up to 3kW and automatic power management. The company unveiled plans for a new heavy duty induction range.
Control Induction launched new built-in wok units, ranging in power from 3kW to 8kW, and its induction solid top. The company, which also offers single to eight-ring induction stoves and planchas, says it aims to “provide everything a chef could need for surface cooking.”
The E2914i induction range from Falcon recently won the UK and Ireland FCSI’s top award for Sustainable Catering Equipment, combining an induction hob with a fully integrated 1/1 gastronorm-compatible fan-assisted convection oven.
For Manitowoc Foodservice UK, induction is part of the company’s aim to supply customers with energy-efficient, high performance kitchens. The company’s UK brands include Moorwood Vulcan, Delfield and Masterwash.
MCS Technical Products distributes the CookTek induction cooking and holding brand, specialising in induction for the foodservice industry. A wide range of products includes the award-winning Incogneeto buffet systems, which can be mounted under a granite surface.
Signature FSE is UK distributor for the Adventys range, which includes freestanding and inset flat and wok surface induction hobs. Adventys says the exact temperature control of its induction plancha is ideal for multiple applications, including finishing sous vide products.
Valera was amongst the first companies to introduce induction technology to the UK foodservice market. The company now offers nearly twenty different induction products including standalone countertop models for ‘theatre’ cooking, drop ins for servery counters and a special wok unit.
Cookware specialist Demeyere produces pots and pans using ControlInduc, a safety system that limits the maximum temperature to 250°C on compatible induction cookers. It avoids burning and makes sure that the pan remains warm, without the risk of overheating.
CESA has produced an Induction Cooking Equipment Guide. It is available to download as a PDF from http://www.cesa.org.uk/news-cesa-induction-guide.asp
The Catering Equipment Suppliers Association (CESA) is the authoritative voice of the catering equipment industry, representing over 150 companies who supply, service and maintain all types of commercial catering equipment – from utensils to full kitchen schemes. For more information on CESA visit www.cesa.org.uk