COOKING BY ELECTRICITY.

Matamata Record, Volume XIII, Issue 1111, 3 April 1930, Page 5

COOKING BY ELECTRICITY.

THAMES VALLEY DISTRICT. Lady Demonstrator Needed. The appointment of a lady demonstrator to popularise the use of electric cooking appliances was considered by the Tnarnes Valley Electric Power Board at Tuesday’s meeting, and the manager was instructed to draw up a scheme for arranging cooking demonstrations throughout the board’s district and submit it to the next meeting.

In his report the manager stated that over 70 ladies had been present at a cooking demonstration arranged by the board in Putaruru on March 14. The board had engaged a lady demonstrator from Auckland. He reminded members that all power boards had demonstrators, and some boards had two demonstrators. They were paid a salary of about £3 15s a week. One board had opened tearooms in its showrooms, and supplied tea at a very moderate charge. One demonstrator attended to the tea rooms while another went round the district.

While the demonstrator was in the district, she visited a consumer who was having difficulty with her range. The necessity for having a person on the staff who could point out any defect in the range itself, or in methods of operation, was most marked on this occasion, for the cause was spon remedied. It appeared that a Patetonga lady, who was said to be one of the best cooks in the district, had been unable to obtain satisfactory results from her range. When the lady demonstrator and the board’s representative examined the range it was found that owing to misuse the thermometer had been burnt out and the door had warped with the heat. This caused a draught of air to flow into the range, and spoil the cooking. After the door was filed so that it fitted tightly the demonstrator had Seen able to cook very satisfactorily. Several neighbours had given orders for electric ranges after this defective range had been put in order. “ Quite a number of consumers while on the flat rate have not given their appliances fair wear and tear, owing to unnecessary use,” stated the manager. “ I can quote instances of consumers not disconnecting the switches on the range while absent from their homes for a number of hours, and on their return have found the thermometer destroyed together with the range door buckled, making complete insulation of the oven impossible.” “ Consumers in some cases do not bother to work out the actual cost of the range per week or month, but rush blindfoldly into the assumption that it is too expensive.”