David Cameron says he gave his cast-iron Aga oven the cold shoulder last year in an attempt to cut his carbon footprint.

Now Middle England seems to be following in the Conservative leader's wake after it emerged yesterday that the company is facing its first fall in sales since the start of the decade.

Aga said that growing concern over the economy and the faltering housing market had forced customers to sit on their hands, rather than part with the £6,500 necessary to buy even the cheapest double-oven cooker in its glossy catalogue.

Even a 21st-century makeover of the 80-year-old brand - including trials of a wind-powered Aga and a “Love Aga” marketing campaign featuring Alex James, the former Blur guitarist - has not been enough to win over the homeowners pondering the ultimate domestic treat.

William McGrath, Aga's chief executive, said that in recent months sales in the Republic of Ireland had fallen as much as 10 per cent below the levels that the company was enjoying a year ago. Latest figures suggest that sales in Britain, where Aga does the bulk of its business, have also dropped in the past six weeks.

Mr McGrath said: “If you look at the number of housing transactions, there is a pretty sound case to say that the market will get tougher before it gets better. We will be affected like everybody else.

“The credit crunch and fears about how it is going to work through to the rest of the economy create an exceptional level of uncertainty.

“But I don't think it's fair to say that Aga is going out of fashion. I always liken it to a little black dress: it's always appropriate and always fashionable.”

Increasing Aga's sex appeal has been at the cornerstone of the transformation of a company, which is still based near the Telford foundry in Shropshire where Abraham Darby first tried using coke instead of charcoal to make cast iron 300 years ago.

The company has started selling electric models that can be programmed to turn on only when required, as an eco-friendly alternative to the oil-guzzling cast-iron models that made Aga into a household name.

It has also experimented with ovens fuelled by wood chips, wind power, solar panels and biofuels from sources such as cow manure.

The publicity push has worked, with Jamie Oliver and Sharon Stone among the rich and famous following the hordes of homeowners who have already opted to have an Aga nestling in the corner of their kitchen.

Aga has also branched out into other, more affordable brands, such as Rangemaster and Fired Earth, which are picking up steam as the credit crunch bites into the core of the business.

The launch of the £3.5million “Love Aga” marketing campaign - the biggest in the company's history - in March came after a warning from Mr McGrath that trading was likely to prove tough in a “demanding” year ahead. Yesterday he admitted that sales of the slow cookers were unlikely to match the 19,600 of a year ago - but he insisted that the group would recover.

“It will be difficult to make further headway on the numbers we saw in 2007,” Mr McGrath said. “The economic backcloth has been as we expected - and things could get more difficult. The Midlands has been a bit of a weak area for us but in the South East we still had a good start to the year.

“You have got to be on your toes in our kind of consumer-related sector, but I do think it will work its way through.”

The Aga saga

— The Aga was invented by Swedish scientist Gustaf Dalen in 1922. It was introduced to Britain in 1929

— The Aga was available initially in cream. In 1956 came the blue, green, white and black models

— An oil model was added in 1964, followed by gas in 1968 and electric in 1985

— Aga says a four-oven model uses 51 litres of oil or 273kwh of electricity a week - about 25 times more than a typical electric oven

— David Cameron has one in his constituency home, but claims to leave it off most of the time. Other fans include the TV chefs Jamie Oliver and Rick Stein and the actress Sharon Stone

— Every Aga is made of 70 per cent recycled materials

Times Recommends

• Food prices rise 8.3% on soaring fish and meat
• Car sales crash as economy hits skids
• House prices fall but Bank leaves rates on hold