[Terrapreta] low cost of charcoal in Brazil

[Tom Miles]

There a have been several studies of labor and poor labor conditions in
Brazilian charcoal production. Brazil makes something like 12 million tons
of charcoal in these kilns compared to a little over a million in the US. 

According to Bob Massengale's book, A History of Charcoal in Missouri, the
early charcoal production in this country was organized as company towns to
supply an iron foundry. Charcoal makers and cordwood cutters were employees
of the foundry. Supplemental cordwood was supplied by farmers, so cordwood
became additional income for independent farmers. When coke displaced
charcoal then cordwood was supplied to wood distillation plants which was,
in turn, displaced by coal-based methanol. With the working conditions it
probably felt like slavery but I don't remember reading about the conditions
described below.

Tom     



 
> When I saw the price of charcoal in Brazil, I wondered why it was so
> much cheaper than here.
> 
> Could it be because they know more about how to make it?  Or what?
> 
> Here's an article on how they keep the production cost down.
> 
> http://www.iabolish.org/slavery_today/country_reports/br.html
> 
> Gerrit