Graph 1: Households that prepare food according to the fuel (energy) they use for cooking
Clean cooking or cooking refers to the use of clean fuels and energy-efficient technologies for food preparation. This paradigm seeks to replace traditional cooking methods, which often use solid fuels such as firewood, charcoal or animal manure. These fuels, when burned in poorly ventilated stoves or fire pits, release large amounts of pollutants into the air, including fine particles and carbon monoxide, which can be harmful to health. Prolonged exposure to these pollutants is associated with a variety of health problems, such as respiratory diseases, cardiovascular diseases, and even cancer.
In addition to health impacts, traditional cooking methods also have adverse environmental effects. Firewood collection contributes to deforestation, biodiversity loss and soil degradation. Likewise, burning biomass generates greenhouse gas emissions, which worsens climate change. In contrast, the adoption of clean cooking technologies, such as efficient stoves and fuels such as liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), electricity or modern biofuels, can significantly reduce these impacts. These alternatives not only improve indoor air quality and reduce health risks, but also reduce pressure on natural resources and contribute to a more sustainable environment.
Key aspects of clean cooking include:
- Improved Stoves and Cookers: use of stoves that burn fuel more efficiently and with fewer emissions compared to traditional open fires or rudimentary stoves.
- Clean Fuels: adoption of fuels that produce less pollutants, such as liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), natural gas, biogas, ethanol, electricity and solar energy.
- Health Benefits: Reducing indoor air pollution significantly decreases the risk of respiratory diseases, cardiovascular conditions and other health problems, especially among women and children who are often exposed to cooking smoke.
- Environmental Impact: decreased deforestation and forest degradation due to less dependence on firewood and charcoal, along with a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions.
- Economic and Social Benefits: Time savings through faster cooking methods and reduced need to collect firewood, which can free up time for education and other productive activities, especially for women and children.
- Safety: reducing the risk of burns and other injuries associated with traditional cooking methods.
An estimated 2.3 billion people on the planet still use solid fuels for cooking on inefficient stoves and open fires. Most of these people live in low- and middle-income countries. This generates air pollution in homes, which causes respiratory problems, cardiovascular diseases, strokes and lung cancer, among others. Approximately 3.2 million people die each year from diseases attributed to this pollution.1
There is a marked gender inequality in relation to the problem of air pollution in homes. It is estimated that 60% of deaths linked to this pollution affect women and children, who are the most vulnerable. Women can spend up to 18 hours a week collecting fuel for cooking. This time could be spent on more productive activities, such as education or income-generating jobs 2, underscoring the disproportionate burden they face due to pre-established gender roles and cultural expectations. Dedicating so much time to this task not only affects physical health, but also well-being and opportunities for personal and professional development.
Historically, Colombia has relied on firewood and charcoal as the main sources of energy for cooking. For a time, inexpensive stoves were used that included grills, ashtrays, and pipes designed to conduct smoke toward the chimney. With the arrival of the 20th century, new technologies were introduced such as gas stoves, electric stoves, convection ovens and, more recently, the microwave 3. These advances have significantly transformed the way cooking is done in urban areas.
According to data from DANE (Spanish acronym for National Administrative Department of Statistics), in urban centers more than 11 million homes mainly use natural gas, followed by pipette gas. However, in rural areas, the situation is different. Approximately 1.8 million households use pipette propane gas, and 1.4 million rural households still rely on firewood or wood for cooking. This dependence on traditional methods considerably increases exposure to air pollution in the home, which represents a serious risk to the health of its inhabitants. The distribution of these cooking methods and their impact on public health can be seen in graph 1.
There are projects in the country that are seeking to combat this phenomenon. The Mining and Energy Planning Unit (UPME, Spanish acronym) has developed the National Firewood Substitution Plan (PNSL, Spanish acronym) as a technical guide to facilitate the transition of the energy sector towards the use of cleaner and more efficient fuels in domestic cooking in Colombia. The plan aims to replace inefficient and highly polluting fuels such as firewood, coal, oil and other materials harmful to public health and air quality. The main goal is that by 2050 all homes have clean energy alternatives. The PNSL establishes an action plan based on four fundamental pillars, which are divided into specific objectives and actions to be started immediately (2023) and achieved in the short term (2026), medium term (2030, in line with the commitments of the Agreement of Paris and the SDGs), and long term (2050, in line with the Carbon Neutral Strategy).
Total households (in thousands)
Source: DANE. Own calculations, Coordination of Economic and Social Research for Quality Infrastructure
Quality Infrastructure is crucial in the implementation of clean kitchens for several reasons:
- Safety and Efficiency Guarantee: Ensures that the equipment and technologies used in clean kitchens meet safety and efficiency standards, minimizing accident risks and optimizing the use of resources.
- Improved Public Health: Quality Infrastructure ensures that clean cooking technologies emit minimal levels of pollutants, thereby reducing exposure to toxic fumes and improving people’s respiratory health.
- Consumer Trust: Establishing and adhering to quality standards generates trust in consumers, encouraging the adoption of new technologies knowing that they are safe and effective.
- Access to International Markets: Complying with international standards facilitates the export and import of clean cooking technologies, allowing access to the best solutions available globally.
- Fostering Innovation: Quality infrastructure drives research and development, promoting the creation of increasingly efficient and less polluting technologies.
- Regulatory Compliance: Helps manufacturers and suppliers comply with local and international regulations, avoiding sanctions and ensuring the sustainability of clean cooking initiatives.
- Continuous Evaluation and Improvement: Allows for the continuous evaluation of clean cooking technologies and their impact, facilitating adjustments and improvements in their design and functionality.
- Accreditation: The accreditation of laboratories, certification or inspection bodies guarantees that the tests carried out on equipment and clean cooking facilities are carried out accurately and reliably. This ensures that only technologies that meet the highest standards of quality and performance reach the market, strengthening consumer confidence and encouraging the adoption of sustainable practices.
For example, a family in Cali that cooks with a gas stove, even if they don’t know it, benefits from ONAC accreditation. This household must undergo the Mandatory Periodic Inspection every five years, in which an ONAC-accredited CAB (Conformity Assessment Body) intervenes. The company in charge of distributing and marketing gas for cooking is probably certified in management systems, according to the IAF 26 sector standards – gas supply. In addition, qualified personnel certified in the skills for the installation, maintenance and repair of residential gas appliances participate in these processes.
In this way, accreditation acts as a guarantee that the certification of all participants in the process meets the appropriate standards. This ensures that the gas that reaches the Valle del Cauca family is safe, with an adequate installation that prevents accidents and health problems.
ONAC, as accreditor of Colombian quality infrastructure, offers multiple scopes related to clean cooking in the CSG, OCP, CPR and OIN schemes, namely:
Certification of Management Systems (CSG): Under this scheme, CABs can be accredited in ISO 9001, ISO 14001, ISO 45001, ISO 22000 standards, in the following related technical sectors:
- IAF Sector 25 – Electricity Supply.
- IAF Sector 26 – Gas Supply,
- IAF Sector 26 – Wholesale and retail trade; Repair of motor vehicles, motorcycles and personal and household goods. 4
However, there are also certification schemes that can be implemented in clean cooking related value chains, such as ISO 55001 Asset Management System, ISO 55001 Energy Efficiency Management System, Energy Management System – ISO 50001, ISO 39001 Road Safety Management System, although they are not limited to these.
Personnel Certification Bodies (OCP): The CABs carry out the certification of the competence of people, in the following areas accredited by ONAC, related to clean cooking:
- Inspector of electrical installations (there are several categories of installations: distribution, generation, end use, etc.).
- Inspector of installations for the supply of gas to residential and commercial users.
- Installer of systems for the supply of combustible gas in residential and commercial buildings
- Operator of bulk LPG transfer system.
- Operator of LPG transfer system in plant.
- Competent person for the safe handling of containers in the distribution of LPG
- Competent person for evaluating LPG systems.
- Competent person for maintenance of Medium Voltage Energized Networks
- Competent person for installing LPG systems
- Competent person for maintaining and repairing gas appliances for residential and commercial use.
- Competent person for welding pipes (gas installations)
- Competent person for packaging cylinders for LPG storage
- Repairer of gas appliances for residential and commercial use.
Certification Bodies for Products, Processes and Services (CPR): ONAC also accredits CABs dedicated to the certification of products, processes and services related to clean cooking, in the IAF sectors of electricity supply, under the categories of production, transportation, distribution and trade of electric energy, in addition to gas supply, where the categories of gas production, pipeline distribution of gaseous fuels and pipeline gas trade participate.
Inspection bodies (OIN): ONAC also accredits CABs that offer inspection services required in any type of installation, equipment, elements, goods and/or services, covering different stages of the life cycle of these items, including the design stage 5. In the case of clean cooking, they cover the areas of inspection of facilities for the supply of combustible gas and the inspection of electrical installations.
Testing Laboratories (LAB): ONAC also carries out accreditations according to the Technical Labelling Regulation (RETIQ), issued by the Ministry of Mines and Energy in 2015, in addition to national regulations issued by ICONTEC. The accredited laboratories and organizations evaluate the energy consumption and performance of electric stoves, microwaves and other kitchen appliances, in accordance with standards such as RETIQ, NTC 4855-1:2020 and NTC 4855-2:2020 (Electric cooking appliances for domestic use), NTC 2832-1:2020 and NTC 2832-2:2019 (Gas appliances for cooking food), as well as the NTC 6358:2019 standard (Biomass stoves for cooking food). In this way, it is ensured that these devices comply with the standards established by international regulations.
In summary, quality infrastructure is essential to ensure that clean cooking initiatives are safe, efficient, consumer-acceptable, compatible with international trade, innovative, appropriately regulated and subject to continuous improvement, thus contributing to a healthier and more sustainable environment.
References
- Clean Cooking Alliance. (s. f.). *The value of clean cooking.* Clean Cooking Alliance. Retrieved 19 june, 2024, from https://cleancooking.org/the-value-of-clean-cooking/
- Ministerio de Cultura. (s. f.). *Bibliotecas de cocinas tradicionales colombianas: Tomo 14.* Ministerio de Cultura. Retrieved 19 june 2024, from https://www.mincultura.gov.co/Sitios/patrimonio/bibliotecas-de-cocinas/tomos/tomo14.pdf
- Netherlands Enterprise Agency. (2022). *What is clean cooking?* Netherlands Enterprise Agency. Retrieved 19 june 2024, from https://english.rvo.nl/topics/renewable-energy-all/what-clean-cooking
- The World Bank. (2020). *Fact sheet: Multi-tier framework for cooking.* The World Bank. Retrieved 19 june, 2024, from https://www.worldbank.org/en/topic/energy/brief/fact-sheet-multi-tier-framework-for-cooking
- Unidad de Planeación Minero Energética. (s. f.). *Plan nacional de sustitución de leña.* Unidad de Planeación Minero Energética. Retrieved 19 june, 2024, from https://www1.upme.gov.co/sipg/Paginas/Plan-nacional-sustitucion-le%C3%B1a.aspx
- World Health Organization. (2023). *Household air pollution and health.* World Health Organization. Retrieved 19 june, 2024, from https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/household-air-pollution-and-healthl
- https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/household-air-pollution-and-health
- https://undp-climate.exposure.co/5-things-to-know-about-clean-cooking
- https://www.mincultura.gov.co/Sitios/patrimonio/bibliotecas-de-cocinas/tomos/tomo14.pdf
- In this technical sector it is possible to find CABs that carry out certification in “Wholesale trade of solid, liquid and gaseous fuels, and similar products”.
OIN Organismos de inspección
