The Kitchen Unit

Our furniture and interior is made of various chemicals from both the plant and mineral kingdoms, such as wood, metals, glass, plant fibers, minerals and synthetics. It is mainly the synthetics that we have to watch out for. Not only can the off-gassing of certain chemicals, such as formaldehyde, be harmful to human beings, but the overall environmental impact can be devastating.

Of the more than 100,000 chemicals used for all kinds of production in the world today, many are not sufficiently tested before they become part of the production process. As a general rule, chemicals which are harmless in small quantities are harmful in larger quantities or in conjunction with other chemicals.

If we consider the kitchen unit and kitchen furnishings for example, from an environmental point of view it matters whether the forest has been sustainably cultivated. Furniture marked as Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) is definitely not made of wood from a rainforest but rather from wood derived from sustainable forestry.

Cork is one of the natural materials considered environmentally friendly, especially if it is made from recycled materials. However, PVC-plastic floor material can, under no circumstances be considered healthy or environmentally friendly.

It is very detrimental for the environment to throw away the kitchen furnishings every few years and install new ones. The house, the home and ecological thinking is a major subject here on Nature.is and subjects related to ecological buildings and ecological furniture are widely discussed on the Web.