Our Social Commitment
Children are our future
For Natamil, making sure that children grow up in a healthy, liveable environment is more than just a part of our social responsibility – it’s an affair of the heart.
That's why we don’t only pay attention to producing sustainably, we also campaign for:
- Clean drinking water
- Sufficient food
- And a healthy environment
In cooperation with ClimatePartner Natamil supports certified climate protection projects in order to compensate for the greenhouse gases emitted during our production process.
West Kenya – Water Purification Project
Many people in western Kenya are suffering from diseases caused by contaminated drinking water. The poor quality of drinking water is the third leading cause of their high infant mortality. Traditionally, the water is boiled over wood fires to make it drinkable. However, this method is far from energy-efficient. It requires collecting large amounts of fire wood and pollutes the air in the living rooms with smoke and dust. Natamil works to solve this problem by supporting a project that supplies households in rural areas with water filters. This not only helps improve the health and quality of life of the people of western Kenya, but it also helps decrease the amount of dangerous pollutants entering the environment.
There are already 3.6 million people in Kenya using their new water filters. This improved hygiene has positively affected people’s overall health and decreased infant mortality rates. School children do not need to sacrifice as much time gathering firewood, allowing them to attend school regularly and ultimately benefiting their society as a whole.
Of course, the environment is benefiting from the use of water filters as well. The demand of firewood has decreased, which has helped reduce deforestation.
The distribution of water filters has also created new jobs in the distribution, training and maintenance of water purification equipment.
Energy-Saving Stoves for Uganda
In Uganda, one of the poorest countries in the world, 95% of all households cook their food over a wood fire. 31% of the population lives in poverty, yet they have to spend 15% of their household income on firewood. The forest areas have decreased in the last 10 years by 31.7%. Natamil is involved in a project that organizes the production and distribution of more efficient cooking stoves that require less firewood and produce less greenhouse gases, while also sparing these families' limited income.
More than 440,000 people have already received access to these new, efficient cooking stoves. This project has had a number of positive health and environmental effects, including:
- Improved health through lower levels of indoor air pollution
- Habitat maintenance and reduced soil erosion due to decreased deforestation
- Decreased spending on firewood by low-income households
- Increased local jobs in the cooking ovens industry
Support and donations for refugee children:
The people of Africa are not the only ones who need our care – directly on our doorstep, in Europe, there are still many children in need. This is why we support the Austrian charity “Help Greece”, which provides children with basic necessities, by donating formula. Also refugee children stranded in Greece from their war-torn countries as well as their exhausted mothers are dependent on donations.