Why should you build a binde?

In many traditional communities, food is cooked over an open fire. This method of cooking consumes large quantities of firewood and often produces large amounts of smoke, which with repeated exposure can irritate human lungs and eyes. In Colombia, most campesinos cook food over an open fire. They position 3 stones so that a cooking pot can be balanced over an open fire. 

In an effort to reduce the amount of firewood that is consumed we began to look for alternatives. In our search, we discovered the "binde," a small cook stove that was traditionally made from a termite mound. Campecinos who cooked using bindes said that they burned less fuel than cooking over an open fire.

The challenge with the traditional method of making bindes out of termite mounds is that it required going into the forest to find a termite mound, bring it back to the village, and fashion it into a binde. The problem with the traditional binde is that although they conserved more fuel, they wouldn't last very long, often cracking and disintegrating with repeated use. So the team of Proyecto Tití worked on a project to make bindes better, and that is what we want to share with you!

We've developed a method of making bindes that significantly reduce the amount of firewood that is consumed. Our studies have shown that a family of 5 uses on average 15 logs a day when cooking over an open fire, but when using a binde you burn on 5 logs a day! And the even better news is that you can burn just about anything in a binde (corn husks, yucca tassels, etc.)!

Our hope is that more communities will begin to use bindes as a method to conserve forested habitat. We have provided information on how to make a binde as well as an evaluation form for you to complete. We would love your feedback on this information and hope that you will share your stories with us on how more communities are using bindes!

Primary ingredients:

• Clay (free of natural debris)
• Sand (fine with no debris)
• Water

These easy step by step instructions will help you make your binde! Learn how to build your binde.