Start-up turns farm waste in Rwanda into renewable energy

Farmers in Rwanda are set to benefit from HomeBiogas, an on-site system that transforms organic waste into renewable energy for cooking or heating. This, after the Israel-based start-up recently won a United Nations tender. HomeBiogas continues to aspire across the globe with its family-sized and affordable biogas system which will now be put to ease in eastern Rwanda. As part of the UN deal, the company will install the system, and train local farmers to use it. One of the main sources of methane gas emissions is the disposal of organic waste in landfills, explains HomeBiogas founder and chief executive Oshik Efrati. Not only has HomeBiogas been found to significantly reduce methane gas emissions, it also reduces over six tonnes of carbon dioxide per year for each system.

Efrati says, “We are grateful that the UN has selected our technology for the third time this year. Our first two projects with the UN in refugee camps in Malawi and Zimbabwe were successfully implemented and now winning this tender will also bring our technology to hundreds of families in Rwanda. “We see this win as an important business development and we believe it will lay the foundation for additional opportunities. We are witnessing a growing global demand for climate tech and waste management innovation, and this is noticeable at Cop27, where we’re currently showcasing our solutions.”

The signing of the agreement with the United Nations followed the selection of the company as an official supplier. This allows the company access to tenders for the supply of waste treatment systems in other projects around the world.

Currently, HomeBiogas systems are sold in 107 countries around the world. Efrati explains that by turning farm waste into clean cooking gas and organic fertiliser, these systems will advance people’s lives. “Farmers will become more resilient with their own-grown organic fertiliser and families will enjoy their own sustainable energy source. The innovative technology provides farmers with efficient and effective waste-to-resource solutions that improve crop outputs and revenue opportunities.” With a regenerative approach to farming, and as the price of chemical fertilisers continue to rise, the solution furthermore creates a multipurpose biofertiliser that supplements chemical fertilisers, stimulates the soil, strengthens the plant, and allows farmers to save on outputs, says Efrati. HomeBiogas has already been implemented in thousands of farms across the world that are now enjoying tens of thousands of litters of organic fertiliser as well as a steady flow of cooking gas. ALSO READ: Renewable energy start-up SOLA gets on the grid early