MTM

Briquettes made from waste biomass would solve an extremely urgent problem: probably more than 90% of all meals in Tanzania are cooked on charcoal fires. Due to the rapidly growing population, especially in the cities, this cooking method leads to huge pressure on the forests, which are actually under protection.

2019-10-27. Mkaa Tunza Mazingira (MTM) is a small start-up company, run by a group of young people in Magunguli village. MTM means “charcoal that cares for the environment” in Swahili. They process char dust into briquettes. For this purpose, they use biomass that explicitly does not come from trees felled for this purpose. Everyone in the village can produce charcoal dust with simple means, under the supervision of the village fire police. The marketing company TBM pays producers a deposit for each delivery and markets the packed briquettes in town. If the sale works out, the producers of the pulverised coal receive a bonus after the final settlement of the TSS service: MTM thus generates a regular income, and TBM earns a TSS marketing commission.

Read more about the briquettes venture.