If you think BioLite camp stoves make all the difference when you’re out in the wild, consider what it means for people in developing countries.
For all BioLite’s portable off-the-grid offerings, which include everything from hi-tech firepits to solar home kits, it’s easy to forget the other side of its mission: to provide clean energy in “emerging markets” through affordable products designed to cook, charge and light off-grid households.
It’s a mission that goes beyond outdoor recreation. Clean-energy products throughout India and Africa are vital to everyday life: for example, open-fire cooking causes more than 4 million deaths per year, according to the World Health Organization, with toxic smoke directly linked to heart disease and chronic lung conditions.
BioLite’s solution was the HomeStove, a wood-burning rocket stove that used 50% less wood than a traditional open fire. Not only that, it was built with a thermoelectric design that reduces smoke while providing external electricity to power the included light.
And now, BioLite is finally releasing the HomeStove to the U.S. market in a limited-production run. It’s a curious release, especially when compared to the company’s newest offerings, which generally pack more energy and add-ons.
But the HomeStove represents the company going back to basics: to offer a simple stove to those who aren’t concerned about portability or if it can also charge their phone. And for anyone who needs a solid outdoor cooktop that’s also healthy for the environment, that’s a godsend.
For preorder details, head on over the BioLite.
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