New recipe for green kitchens: Bamboo
Companies push kitchen products made from bamboo as a way for consumers to make their homes more eco-friendly.
With people around the country looking for ways to reduce their impact on the environment (not to mention all the companies clambering to make some green off the new green trend), eco-friendly kitchen accessories are popping up as fast as a field of bamboo shoots.
Some of them are even taking the form of bamboo. Specialty distributors and big-name retailers alike are now pushing bamboo kitchen utensils, bowls, cutting boards, and dish racks.
Part of the reason for the explosion of bamboo products is that it's a greener alternative to traditional wood, so it's getting attention from people looking to make home products more environmentally friendly. Bamboo grows very quickly, making it a nuisance when planted in your neighbor's yard but highly renewable as a wood source. Bamboo is also naturally antimicrobial and moisture-resistant, or so says Crate & Barrel, which now sells dozens of bamboo-based kitchen items, furniture, and bath accessories.
None of that might matter to the average consumer as much as one other attribute--it's also gorgeous. Many bamboo products have a beautiful golden brown color to them, and they're often made with two complementary shades of wood for added style. Going green never looked so good.