9 Reasons to Do Solar Cooking During a Global Pandemic

COVID-19 has fundamentally altered the flow of our lives, whether our work lives, social lives, or educational lives. But as we have written elsewhere, experts argue that finding some sense of normalcy and routine during unprecedented times is the best way to wait out quarantines and lockdowns.

We have spent years talking about how solar cooking can improve your life, and this advice still holds true now. Below are ten reasons why it still makes sense to keep up solar cooking during a global pandemic (hat tip to our friends at Maya Center Village for coming up with this idea).

1. Solar cooking eliminates exposure to smoke, which is produced by cooking methods using charcoal and firewood, which cause respiratory strain and increase the risk of respiratory illness.  A GoSun oven, unlike a campfire, doesn't use smoke. Therefore it's better for the environment and your lungs. With traditional campfire cooking methods, carcinogens are carried in the smoke from the fire; which exposes your food, eyes, and lungs to harmful chemicals. Those who have contracted COVID-19 are at higher risk for respiratory illness. 

2. Solar cooking means grid independence. No need for power lines or supply chains. Just by removing solid fuel from the equation, the situation can be improved dramatically. In the Iridimi Refugee Camp in Chad, the need to leave the camp to gather firewood was reduced by 86 percent through the introduction of tens of thousands of solar cookers (CooKit model). In a pilot study conducted in Guatemala, through the Global Alliance for Clean Cookstoves's Pilot Innovation Fund, GoSun's stove was found to save women a significant amount of time and money.

3. Solar cooking reduces environmental impact:  A solar oven is a fantastic low-cost, ecologically friendly alternative to cooking with wood, gas, charcoal, and other fuels that dump loads of carbon into the atmosphere.  The only pollution given off by the GoSun solar cooker is during manufacturing. Some pollution is emitted during this process, but it continues to be improved to cut down on waste and environmental pollutants overall. The overall carbon footprint of each solar cooker becomes negative, after cooking just a few meals.

4. Solar cooking is easily accessible at home. It's an easy way to prepare meals during shelter-in-place orders. And you aren't limited by what you can cook, either.  Cook everything from meat and veggies to soup and bread. Steam and drip trays allow for cooking multiple dishes at once. 

5. You can solar dry food, which preserves it and increases food security.  Click here to learn more. 

6. Purify water. This can be done in a solar cooker, but it works even better in the GoSun Flow, which  not only purifies water with solar power, but it's an entire kitchen sink that can fit into a backpack, so you're able to sanitize while away from home. 

7. Solar cooking is safe and easy. With GoSun's stoves, food gets hot inside, but thanks to its vacuum tube technology, the cooking tubes remain cool to the touch, preventing nasty burns.  outside of GoSun's innovative technology remains cool to the touch.

8. Solar cooking makes social distancing easy. There are fewer trips to the store for fuel, propane, or charcoal. This means fewer opportunities to contract an illness. 

9. Solar cooking works during any emergency. These cookers do not rely on conventional electricity or power, making them resilient in the worst sort of natural disasters, whether hurricanes, earthquakes, or wildfires. The disaster relief community is starting to notice: the American Red Cross purchased 1500 GoSun units in the aftermath of a major typhoon.