EU to toasters: You're not toast -- yet
A European directive had threatened to pull the plug on toasters amid energy concerns, but reports suggest a stay of execution for now.
Toasters, hairdryers and other small appliances were previously included in the Ecodesign Directive, a European Union proposal designed to restrict emissions on select household devices. But at a press conference in Brussels earlier this week, officials said the EU plans to keep toasters off the chopping block.
"We want to put the products on the list that have the highest energy yield, based on scientific evidence," European Commission Vice President Frans Timmermans said at the event, according to a report by Agence France Presse. "That's why kettles are on the list...and that's why toasters are not on the list."
The Ecodesign proposal was hotly contested during Britain's Brexit referendum in June, when campaigns circulated blasted the proposal for being overly invasive:
Timmermans said the controversy surrounding Ecodesign during the referendum did impact the decision to leave toasters off the list, the AFP report said.
An EU representative did not immediately respond to a request for comment.