Fuel efficient stoves
In tea and coffee growing regions many people cook on traditional indoor fires. Unfortunately, these indoor fires cause a multitude of problems for those who use them.
The main issue is the smoke they generate which is dangerous to breathe — especially when the fires are used day in-day out.
They also force people to spend hours every week gathering firewood or paying for it from their limited income.
Open cooking fires put pressure on the environment too. They’re a driver for deforestation, and they pump large amounts of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. That’s why we’re helping to provide better alternatives to our farmers as part of our move to carbon neutrality.
The alternative
In Uganda and Malawi, we’ve been working with our partners to provide thousands of fuel efficient cooking stoves. These stoves are much more efficient than a traditional indoor fire. They burn just as hot, but they use less firewood and produce significantly less smoke. Once they’re in use, they help our farmers to lead healthier lives
Fuel efficient stoves also represent a significant time and cost savings for our smallholders. They minimise the amount of time spent gathering firewood or the cost of buying the fuel. Some of these stoves are even being produced in the communities to help provide an income for those who make them.
Our work in Malawi also represents a big step in our journey towards being a truly carbon-neutral business. Working with our partners, we track the amount of carbon that we’ve managed to save by providing access to these cooking stoves. Every stove that we install helps us to offset the carbon emissions of our supply chain in a way that truly benefits the people we work with.