Your aluminium cookware has expiry date: Experts

Time of India

4 hours ago

Bengaluru: Aluminium cookware is a staple in Indian kitchens, but if you've been using the same pot for years, it may be time for a rethink.
At an orientation programme organised by Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) here Monday, regulators and manufacturers stressed that aluminium utensils come with a limited life span and should be replaced every 12 to 24 months, depending on usage and material quality.
While anodising and using heavier material can extend the cookware's life, BIS is now pushing for greater transparency. The updated standards mandate the labelling of aluminium grades on all products.
Revised BIS norms require that toxic metal content — such as lead, cadmium, mercury, and hexavalent chromium — be kept below 0.05% in material for cookware. These specifications will apply to small enterprises from July 2025 and to micro enterprises from Oct 2025.
Monday's session, aimed at briefing manufacturers on the revised 2024 BIS norms for cookware, triggered a wider conversation on consumer expectations and health risks from overused or degraded utensils. "Aluminium is a soft metal. If used at high temperatures over prolonged periods, even heavy-grade utensils can degrade in five-ten days. Light, wrought aluminium cookware lasts barely a year, while medium and heavy variants may stretch up to two years," Narendra Reddy Beesu, director, BIS Bengaluru, said.
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Industry voices echoed this. "Customers today want lifetime use from aluminium cookware, but the realistic benchmark is 12 to 20 months. Those who want durability often move to tri-ply cookware, but that isn't affordable for the mass market yet," Rohit Chawla, co-founder, Kaviraj Kinox Kitchen, said.
Some cookware manufacturers admitted that coatings begin to peel off after the first year — posing potential health hazards.
"As you know, anything in excess is harmful. Beyond the warranty period, coatings start to wear off. That's when consumers should replace such utensils to avoid health hazards," one manufacturer said.
"Pure aluminium is 'grade 19000', with 99% aluminium content. Other grades like '63540' or '60342' are alloys, which are harder, but mixed with other elements," Beesu explained.
BIS clarified that warranties and guarantees are business decisions and not part of regulatory standards.
"People often confuse warranty with compliance. That's a commercial strategy, not part of our standards," Beesu observed.