<div dir="ltr"><div class="gmail_default" style="font-size:small">Hi Teddy,</div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-size:small"><br></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-size:small">Where do your customers collect their cobs? As Christa points out, smallholders usually burn their cobs themselves. Commercial maize farms are successful in Kenya, though. Do commercial farmers leave the cobs in the field as waste - as I have read?</div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-size:small"><br></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-size:small">There is a factory in Eldoret that uses cobs to produce chemicals. Bio-Corn appears to be closing down, though. It consumed 60,000 tonnes of cobs per year. I have contacted Bio-Corn to determine its sources of cobs. My guess is that its sources are commercial farms. This is from an <a href="https://www.standardmedia.co.ke/business/article/2001251825/company-to-make-chemicals-from-maize-cobs">article</a> announcing the opening of the factory:</div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-size:small"><b><i>"[T]he factory is expected to be a major boost to maize farmers who can now earn from the cobs, which often end up as waste or domestic fuel."</i></b><br></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-size:small"><div><img src="cid:ii_k5nz7ff71" alt="image.png" width="472" height="266"><br></div></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-size:small"><br></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-size:small">Sun24 is looking at more efficient ways to burn cobs. Your Cookswell KCJ (Kenya Ceramic Jiko) would work well. <span class="gmail_default"> Smallholders already burning cobs can increase efficiency by burning them in charcoal jikos like the KCJ.</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-size:small"><br></div><div><div dir="ltr" data-smartmail="gmail_signature"><div dir="ltr"><div dir="ltr"><div dir="ltr"><div dir="ltr"><div dir="ltr"><div dir="ltr"><div dir="ltr"><div dir="ltr"><div dir="ltr"><div dir="ltr"><div dir="ltr"><div dir="ltr"><div dir="ltr"><div dir="ltr"><div dir="ltr"><div dir="ltr"><div dir="ltr"><div dir="ltr"><div dir="ltr"><div dir="ltr"><div dir="ltr"><div>Maize cobs may be an underutilized<span class="gmail_default" style="font-size:small">, renewable</span> cooking fuel source.<span class="gmail_default" style="font-size:small"> And a source for char.</span></div><div><br></div><div>Kevin</div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div><br></div><br><div class="gmail_quote"><div dir="ltr" class="gmail_attr">On Tue, Jan 21, 2020 at 12:28 AM Cookswell Jikos <<a href="mailto:cookswelljikos@gmail.com" target="_blank">cookswelljikos@gmail.com</a>> wrote:<br></div><blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="margin:0px 0px 0px 0.8ex;border-left:1px solid rgb(204,204,204);padding-left:1ex"><div dir="ltr"><div>Hi Ron, </div><div><br></div><div>We have quite a few customers here who buy kilns for maize cob charcoal making - <a href="http://kenyacharcoal.blogspot.com/2012/10/make-and-use-maize-cob-charcoal.html" target="_blank">http://kenyacharcoal.blogspot.com/2012/10/make-and-use-maize-cob-charcoal.html</a> the wood vinegar from it seems particularly useful in organic farming according to 2 farmers who had bought them. </div><div><br></div><div>Corn cob charcoal itself is pretty awesome - it burns super fast and hot which makes it good for blending with regular charcoal or quick cooking of things like tea or rice. </div><div><br></div><div>Best, <br><br>Teddy</div><div><br></div><br clear="all"><div><div dir="ltr"><div dir="ltr"><div><div dir="ltr"><div dir="ltr"><div dir="ltr"><div><font face="arial narrow, sans-serif">Teddy Kinyanjui</font></div><div><font face="arial narrow, sans-serif">Sustainability Director</font></div><div><font face="arial narrow, sans-serif"><br></font></div><div><img src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-3YUMG1TTODQ/Wh6o8gWfRmI/AAAAAAAAAyw/1bp5qqpvmwQwg5JXqL7hz-OLGSx5nSEXgCK8BGAs/s512/TK%2BEmail%2BLogo.jpg" width="200" height="100"><font face="arial narrow, sans-serif"><br></font><font face="arial narrow, sans-serif"><br></font></div><div><font face="arial narrow, sans-serif"> <a href="https://www.facebook.com/CookswellJikos" target="_blank"><img src="https://images2.imgbox.com/97/28/BgG0H6ZN_o.png"></a> <a href="https://www.instagram.com/cookswelljikos" target="_blank"><img src="https://images2.imgbox.com/54/7e/owicmXIG_o.png"></a> <a href="https://twitter.com/cookswelljikos?lang=en" target="_blank"><img src="https://images2.imgbox.com/64/b1/oh4tfzkH_o.png"></a><br></font></div><div><b><br></b></div><div><div style="font-size:small"><br></div></div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div><br><br><br></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div><br></div><br><div class="gmail_quote"><div dir="ltr" class="gmail_attr">On Tue, Jan 21, 2020 at 4:10 AM Ronal Larson <<a href="mailto:rongretlarson@comcast.net" target="_blank">rongretlarson@comcast.net</a>> wrote:<br></div><blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="margin:0px 0px 0px 0.8ex;border-left:1px solid rgb(204,204,204);padding-left:1ex">List: <br>
<br>
Kevin McLean and I have been supporting some research in Uganda on making char from corn cobs. They seem perfect to me - the right costs, shape, and size. Mostly left in the field, but would be much more valuable if converted to both energy and char (the latter to go back to the field). <br>
<br>
Anyone know of any place where this is now happening - in stoves (TLUD or other)?<br>
<br>
This is somewhat similar to using rice husks, which is happening a lot. Besides corn cobs, what other crop residues should be used for combined cooking and char-making? <br>
<br>
Ron<br>
<br>
<br>
<br>
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