We ask ourselves how efficient the use of energy is during consumption of the product that we are considering retailing. As much as a quarter of all UK carbon dioxide emissions come from the fuels we use in our homes. Total UK electricity use in 2005 was 407 billion kilowatt hours. 29% of this was by UK households. 8% of energy supplied to UK households is wasted in electronic equipment left on standby, equivalent to 4 million tonnes of CO2 annually! Clearly we can make an impact on these figures simply by using electronic devices more sensibly, and switching them off. An alternative is to consume products that use energy from renewable sources (currently only 5% of UK supply is from renewables). Biome Lifestyle offers wind-up/ solar powered radios and torches, which have a rechargeable battery. By winding up the radio/ torch or by leaving it in daylight, they become fully recharged. This is hugely energy efficient and avoids disposal of harmful batteries.