Gooding’s Groves Olive Farm and B&B recently launched a
community upliftment initiative in association with Natural
Balance – producers of the Wonderbag. The Wonderbag is a
heat-retention cooker that requires only enough heat to
start the cooking process. Because of its insulating
properties the bag retains the heat and completes the
cooking process with no further electricity needed.
This cooking method is ideally suited to rice, pap, soups,
vegetables, meat and vegetable stews and casseroles. Because
of the slow-cooking method, the food retains its nutrients
and texture, resulting in truly appetising meals. Due to its
insulating properties, the Wonderbag also keeps cold and
frozen foodstuffs cold for several hours.
Two
independent studies conducted in 2009, found that with
regular use, the Wonderbag can save at least 15kWh of
electricity and 1.6 litres of paraffin a week, and as much
as 50% of the energy needed for cooking. A single bag also
prevents 500kg of carbon emissions per year. Because of its
potential to mitigate the effects of climate change, the
Wonderbag project is being registered by the United Nations
Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) as a
programmatic Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) project. This
means that for every bag sold, verified carbon offsets will
be traded on the international market.
Households benefit from the Wonderbag through:
• Cost-effective cooking,
• Improved air quality in homes by reducing smoke from
cooking fires,
• Reduced risk of shack fires caused by paraffin stoves,
• Tasty, nutritious meals that can be prepared ahead of
time,
• Reduced food wastage as food cannot burn or overcook, and
• Empowerment by increasing cash for discretionary
expenditure.
According
to Salomé Gooding, wife of Gooding’s Groves owner Malcolm
Gooding, “This is a project we are delighted to be part of.
It is a simple technology that can make a very real
difference in people’s lives and is socially and
environmentally responsible in every way.” To prove this
Gooding’s Groves donated several catering size Wonderbags to
worthy projects in the valley, including crèches and soup
kitchens.
While Wonderbags can be a godsend for community projects
they are equally at home in modern time-constrained
households. Who wouldn’t enjoy being able to start dinner
early in the day and arrive back home from work or ferrying
around the kids and not have to worry about dinner as it has
been gently cooking away for hours and just has to be
served?
To buy a Wonderbag or for more information contact Gooding’s
Groves on tel. 021 876 2158 or email
Info@goodingsgroves.co.za.
