The Silestone Institute has produced a report which sheds light on future trends in home kitchens
as predicted by a team of experts and consumers
The kitchen of the future, a multifunctional,
hyperconnected and health-focused space
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Chefs Andoni Luis Aduriz (**Michelin in Mugaritz) and Gastón Acurio; Harvard anthropologist
Richard Wrangham, architect Piero Lissoni and industrial designer Patricia Moore were among
the 17 distinguished experts who participated in the report. Others included notable figures from the
worlds of sociology, nutrition, technology and sustainability.
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In addition, a survey carried out at more than 800 points of sale in kitchen stores across the world
provides data on the importance people afford to this room in their homes.
London, 23 February 2017.- The Silestone Institute has produced a report, entitled, “Global Kitchen: the
home kitchen in the era of globalisation”, which compiles the main design and usage trends for the
kitchen of the future. It will be a hyperconnected space, one for leisure, work, health and relaxation. Not
only that, but it will also incorporate techniques and devices normally found in professional kitchens and
will have smart appliances.
The kitchen, besides cementing its role as nerve
centre of the home, is destined to become a multifunctional space. In fact, even today, it is often the
largest room in the house and the one that people
invest more in. But, what will it look like in 25
years? Will it change colour to match our moods?
Will it be a place of healing? A room for creativity,
perhaps?
Cosentino, as a business leader well-versed in
innovating and developing value-added surfaces for the world of architecture and design, wants to unlock the
secrets of the home kitchen of the future with its project, Global Kitchen.
The experts have revealed that the kitchen will regain its traditional title as centre of the home, a title that it has
been slowly stripped of over the decades as a result of the needs of the growing middle class (keeping odours
away from the rest of the house, access to heating in all rooms, etc.) and modern lifestyles.
Moreover, it has become a space of relaxation and family leisure, even a place of work; as a result it is being
integrated increasingly with the rest of the home. It is a multi-functional space and is expected to disappear as an
independent room. Its design will not only take aesthetics and function into account but also emotional value, and
it will strengthen its use as a space for relaxation and well-being.
The kitchen is going to see a technological boom as well. Connectivity and smart appliances will not only
make shopping, cooking and laundry easier, but also the relationship with our surroundings, enabling us to use
the worktop to cook or make calls, or even watch TV. This will, therefore, professionalise the home kitchen,
either through greater access to equipment, that until now has only been available in the catering sector, or by
expanding knowledge and the growing interest in food, nutrition and foodie culture.
When it comes to designing a kitchen the efficiency and energy-efficiency, flexibility and sustainability of
the materials will all be taken into account, without threatening their durability, safety and hygiene. In this sense,
worktops will be multifunctional and it will be possible for us to cook directly on the surface, without the need for a
specific panel.
For all of these reasons and more in 25 years the kitchen will be a social, health-focused space(spurred on
by the spread of healthier cooking methods, home-grown or zero-mile produce), a place for connecting with
others in the home (socialising, working, etc.) and with your surroundings (online shopping, interacting with the
outside world, etc.). The kitchen’s transversal transformation will require input from professionals from design,
architecture and interior design. As well as from sociologists, nutritionists and specialists in the environment and
energy efficiency.
The aim of this project is to promote an interdisciplinary, thinking space for analysing the effect of globalisation
on the kitchen and identifying how this space will evolve in the next 25 years, with the ultimate goal of spreading
this knowledge to the kitchen industry and society in general.
Forecasting and sales experts’ opinions on home kitchens:
842 kitchen and bath studio professionals from eight countries took part in a survey which (Australia, Brazil,
Spain, United States, Italy, Portugal, United Kingdom and Sweden) supplements the Global Kitchen report. The
report assesses the evolution of kitchen space in terms of use, design and equipment taking into account the
respondents’ proximity and direct contact with the end user, as well as their experience and knowledge of the
sector.
87% said that the kitchen would become more relevant as an activity and meeting place in the house. In
fact, 81.5% think that it will be a single space with a dining room and living room; and according to 92.3% it will
be used to get together with family, to work and do homework (60.9%) or surf the internet (62.4%).
The kitchen’s connection to the internet and devices (tablets, mobiles, computer, wearables...) and to smart
appliances stands out as one of the major technological developments in the medium- to short-term, ahead of
sustainable solutions in water and energy conservation and waste management. However, there are differences
among countries when it comes to choosing the latest development. While Australia and Brazil agree that new
cooking methods are the most important, Italy and the UK prefer smart appliances. In contrast, Spain and the US
value connectivity above all.
The worktops of the future will allow us to
cook directly on their surfaces, and will
incorporate connectivity and serve as a
control panel. These worktops will also
manage tasks like weighing and calculating
the nutritional value of foodstuffs, absorbing
liquids and cleaning.
The Silestone Institute is a platform for
international research, supported by the
Cosentino Group to disseminate information about cooking.
What the experts say: reflections on the Global Kitchen report
“The kitchen will be a place to relax, prepare food
and, of course, to eat”.
Susan Serra: Kitchen designer and blogger, president of
Susan Serra Associates Inc.
“The kitchen is the perfect place to interact with others and hold a conversation:
it’s the space for dinner and after-dinner conversation.”
Andoni Aduriz: Chef at Mugaritz,
Michelin
“When the kitchen is considered part of the living room
the person cooking will be closer to the rest of the family”.
Richard Wrangham: Professor of Biological Anthropology, Harvard University
“The kitchen space has to be flexible
and allow personalisation to adapt to the needs of the user”.
Alessandro Finetto: Architect and designer, Director of Global Consumer Design Whirlpool EMEA&Asia
“The major development in the kitchen is the mobile phone and its connection to the world”.
Einav Gefen: Corporate Executive Officer in Food Solutions, Unilever North America
“Kitchens will adapt to the foodie movement and nutrition awareness.”
Sandy Gordon: Interior designer, SGI Interiors consultant and professor at the University of Wisconsin
“I see the kitchen like the United Nations:
a space where people talk, argue and make peace”.
Piero Lissoni: Art director and co-founder of Lissonis Associati and Lissoni Architettura
“The kitchen is another opportunity to get closer to science.
Universities should create spaces for cooking, learning and exchanging ideas”.
Vayu Maini Rekdal: Scientist, chef and educator, Harvard University
“The least pleasant routine chores will become invisible
and the machines won’t even ask us how to do them”.
Ignacio Martín: Global Head of Telefónica Smart Home Services
“The kitchen will give us more and more information and we will speak to it”.
Patricia Moore: Designer, gerontologist and president of MooreDesign Associates
“New devices are built to “multi R” criteria,
redesigned to be repairable, reusable, recyclable... and rethought.”
Anabel Rodríguez: Executive director of the Circular Economy Foundation
“Statistics show that in 25 years we will be renovating our kitchens
an average of three times during our lives”.
Sian Supski: Doctor of sociology and researcher at the University of Monash
About the Cosentino Group
The Cosentino Group is a global, family-owned company that produces and distributes high value
innovative surfaces for architecture and design. As a leading company, Cosentino imagines and
anticipates together with its customers and partners design solutions that offer value and inspiration to
people’ lives. This goal is made possible by pioneering brands that are leaders in their respective
segments such as Silestone®, Dekton® and Sensa by Cosentino®. Technologically advanced surfaces,
which allow the creation of unique designs for the home and public spaces.
The group bases its development on international expansion, an innovative research and development
program, respect for the environment and sustainability, and its ongoing corporate commitment to
society and the local communities where it operates, education, equality and health & safety.
The Cosentino Group currently distributes its products and brands in more than 80 countries, from its
headquarters in Almeria (Spain). Currently Cosentino is present in 32 countries, with its own assets in 29
of them. The group has seven factories (six in Almería (Spain and one in Brazil), one intelligent logistic
platform in Spain, and more than 120 commercial and business units throughout the world. More than
90% of Cosentino Group’s financial turnover comes from international markets.
For more information:
www.cosentino.com/blog/
Vanessa Feo / Cosentino Group International Communications / [email protected] / +34 16 436 498