Nearly 80% of many families fuel come from wood products
such as charcoal. In addition, the nearly 2 million tons of charcoal sold last
year were all illegally sold to the Kenyan public. Generally when charcoal is
made nearly 90% of the tree goes to waste. Also, since demand is high many
producers of charcoal have begun slash and burn techniques which has accelerated
the rate of destruction of the forest. Furthermore, once charcoal reaches the
marketplace between 10-15% of it is thrown away in the form of dust or small
pieces knows as fines. Therefore, in 2000 Chardust was created to find an alternative
to charcoal as a fuel source. They discovered that the dust from charcoal is a
major waste product but can be used to make briquettes. The briquettes burn up
to three hours with no smoke or smell unlike the burning of charcoal.
The company now sells nearly 8 tons of briquettes a day to Nairobi area neighborhoods
and businesses. Chardust briquettes are now a competitive force in the fuel
market since the briquettes are now as affordable as purchasing charcoal but last
much longer and are safer. Furthermore, the new industry has created more local
employment through production and distribution of the briquettes. For more
information on Chardust briquettes please visit the company's
website.
