Firewood and Charcoal businesses are presently recording boom following high cost of petroleum products.
In this special report, Onyinye Agubaeze highlights the hidden high profit margin in such business.
The high cost of cooking gas and kerosene across the country has unveiled fast moving businesses with high profit.
Reasons for the increasing number of firewood and charcoal businesses across the state has become emerging opportunity for many Nigerians seeking for source of livelihood.
A visit to some cooking gas shops in Awka revealed that the price of cooking gas across major gas stations in the country within two weeks rose from three hundred and fifty naira per kilogram, to four hundred naira.
Speaking on why she preferred charcoal over cooking gas or kerosene, a food vendor, Mrs. Anne Obiora, said that charcoal is more economical, faster and durable.
Mrs. Obiora also noted that a bag of charcoal, which costs about two thousand, seven hundred naira can be used in preparing a full bag of Rice even as she explained that the use of gas by some careless persons could cause explosion hence her choice of charcoal.
Disputing the preference of charcoal over gas, another food vendor, who switched from using charcoal to gas in her hospitality business, Mrs. Fidelia Okeke, highlighted some of the disadvantages of cooking with charcoal to include; sight deterioration caused by constant contact with smoke, respiratory problems, which can be gotten from constant inhalation of carbon monoxide and waist pain among others.
Sampling the opinion of buyers, some people were of the believe that food cooked with charcoal tastes better than that prepared with cooking gas or kerosene while others believe that it is mere mentality, which has gained no grounds.
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