Is Prosumerfication Harming The Planet?

Treehugger points us to an article in the WSJ that reflects Prosumerfication and wonders whether the trend where regular folk upgrade their gadgets, electronics and even cooking wear to professional grade equipment may not so good for the planet. The WSJ highlights a recent example of Prosumerfication – the hi-tech rice cooker:

Toshiba’s creation is the “Vacuum Pressure Cooker,” the company’s most expensive rice cooker ever. The pressure makes it possible to boil the water in the cooker at a higher temperature, thus making for fatter, shinier and sweeter grains of rice. The air-sucking filter creates a vacuum causing the rice to absorb water more quickly while it soaks. The silver and diamond dust are used to coat the cooking vessel so as to distribute heat evenly, so every grain of rice has the same texture.

Treehugger says:

Prosumerification- the tendency of home stoves morph into into commercial Garland ranges, Home entertainment systems that rival a THX equipped cinema, video cameras where George Lucas couldn’t use all the features, all of them more complex, expensive and sucking more power.

Household emissions present a major challenge [in Japan]. (household emissions rose 37.4% from 1990 levels). The government estimates that household emission of 175 million tons of CO2 in 2005 will have to be cut by 38 million tons – or nearly 22% – by 2010. Officials are urging citizens to take quicker showers, use less air conditioning and heating, and switch to eco-friendly appliances.

The Prosumerification of Everything (TreeHugger)