Contact
Margeir Gissurarson
Strategic Scientist
margeir.gissurarson@matis.is
The aim of the project was to design and build 100 smokehouses in fishing villages on Lake Tanganyika in Tanzania, which used about 80% less firewood when smoking fish than traditional smoking in the area.
In Tanzania, about 450 thousand cubic meters of wood are used per year to smoke fish, so it can be estimated that if Matís' processing unit goes into general use in that country, it will be possible to reduce wood use by 350 thousand cubic meters per year.
Traditional smoking of fish is practiced over open fires and therefore the fish is rather roasted than smoked. The treatment is usually performed by women who are exposed to smoke every day and the result is difficulty breathing, eye pain and even blindness. The challenge of the project was therefore not only to solve technical processing issues but also to improve the health of the inhabitants of the area.
The project area was a fishing village on Lake Tanganyika in Tanzania, which is about 160 kilometers long. Most of these villages have no access to electricity or running water