The mission of this program is to enhance the quality of life in developing countries that are blessed with an abundance of sunshine by empowering women to raise their standard of living through self-sustaining micro-enterprise. This enterprise will utilize the ultimate renewable resource, sunshine, to cost-effectively provide a needed food staple while combating the destructive forces of deforestation and working to decrease desertification.
Identify and train entrepreneurs to establish bakeries. Each bakery will utilize a large commercial solar oven (Villager Sun Oven®) to bake bread, cakes, and pastries for sale in a specified geographic region.
Work with each entrepreneur to:
TTT will provide up to 50% of the funds required to start a Micro-Sun-Bakery in qualified countries in exchange for 50% of the net profits of the bakery for 5 years.
Each bakery will be equipped with a Villager Sun Oven® that will reach temperatures in excess of 500° F / 260° C. This oven is specifically designed for Third-world bakery operations. Each oven is equipped with a collapsible reflector assembly which folds up for easy transport and will be mounted on a trailer, which will allow them to be pushed into a secure storage area when not in use. It comes equipped with a propane backup system, which allows it to be utilized at night or during the rainy season.
These ovens have an effective life of at least 20 years. The Villager Sun Oven® is manufactured by TTT's Joint Venture partner Sun Ovens International, Inc. of Elburn, Illinois USA and is the only commercial solar oven in the world.
Each location will be equipped with a 150-piece Micro-Sun-Bakery package that includes:
The TTT Micro-Sun-Bakery Program will assist entrepreneurs establish, self-sustaining bakery enterprises. Each of these bakeries will employ 8 to 12 people to prepare, bake, sell, and deliver goods that have been baked in a solar oven.
Each Micro-Sun-Bakery will fill the need for fresh, locally prepared bread and other baked goods. Currently, bread must be delivered to rural areas from larger cities. This delivery increases the cost of the bread. Due to the distance of the bread makers from rural villages, there are days when bread is not delivered and the bread is typically not fresh. The bakeries will be located in the market area that they serve; this will reduce the delivery expense and allow fresher baked goods to be provided to the consumer. The closer location of the bakeries to the markets served, and the use of the sun as the primary fuel source, should allow baked goods to be sold to the ultimate consumer for an amount less than the current prices.
Each bakery can provide baked goods for up to 250 families. The proposed bakeries will be able to be located in areas that will have a need for baked goods without posing a serious threat to any established bakery operations. The jobs that will be created will help the local economy of the villages in which each bakery is located, by keeping more money in the local area.
The primary source of energy will be the sun. These micro-enterprises will be able to function regardless of power availability. Electric mixers will be utilized when power is available; hand mixers will be on hand to allow for dough and batter preparation when power is not available.
The combustion of fossil fuels releases from wood fires releases greenhouse gases (GHGs) such as carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, with potentially serious costs to the global economy and environment. Increasing GHG concentrations are likely to cause large negative economic impacts in the future. Each Micro-Sun-Bakery will reduce the amount of GHGs which would otherwise have been emitted.
The single biggest threat to many developing countries ability to grow and prosper is deforestation. The demands of massive population growth, and the inefficient conversion of wood to charcoal, have outstripped the forest's ability to regenerate. Science strongly supports the fact that deforestation is changing weather patterns, causing soil erosion, and depleting plant and animal life. Currently much of the baking in developing countries is done in ovens that are fueled by charcoal. The use of an oven powered by the sun will allow for enormous volumes of baked goods to be prepared without further damaging the already fragile environment. In the cities, gas is used to power ovens; utilizing the free energy of the sun will help to decrease the need to import cooking gas and will contribute in a positive way to the country's balance of trade.
Deforestation is the gravest environmental crisis facing the world today. Its far-reaching effects include:
The TTT Micro-Sun-Bakery Program will utilize business development to provide solutions to the growing problems of deforestation and global warming through economic empowerment. Every tree that is allowed to remain in place will help future generations. Every woman who gains entrepreneurial expertise will contribute to improving the quality of life for herself and her community.
The TTT Micro-Sun-Bakery program will invest up to 50% of the initial capital required to start a bakery. Each Bakery will be required to submit weekly sales and profit reports to and remit payment of 50% of the net profits to TTT or its agent for 5 years.
TTT will hold title to the bakery for 5 years. Title will pass to the bakery owner/operator at the end of 5 years. TTT reserves the right to take possession of the bakery equipment if there are more than 3 consecutive months of operations that do not produce a net profit.
TTT's investment will be limited to 50% of the start up expenses and TTT will assume no responsibility for any operating losses.
Based on a per location basis shown in U.S. Dollars.
| Start-up expenses: | ||
|---|---|---|
| Purchase of Villager Sun Oven® with micro-baking package | $10,500 | |
| Shipping of Villager Sun Oven® * | 3,500 | |
| Furniture and fixtures | 1,000 | |
| Purchase initial supplies | 500 | |
| Total start up expenses per location | $15,500 | |
| *Shipping prices vary from country to country. | ||
| Sales projections per location: | ||
| (Prices and costs vary from country to country and are presented for illustration purposes only) | ||
| Projected hourly bread production (500gms) | 30 loaves | |
| Projected daily bread production | 240 loaves | |
| Projected monthly bread production | 6,000 loaves | |
| Projected annual bread production | 72,000 loaves | |
| Projected sales price per loaf of bread | $0.45 | |
| Average gross revenue per hour | $13.50 | |
| Projected revenue per day (8 hours) | $108.00 | |
| Projected revenue per month (25 days) | $2,700.00 | |
| Projected annual revenue | $32,400.00 | |
| Expence Projections: | ||
| Projected expenses as % of sales | ||
| Direct costs-raw material* | 20% | |
| Direct costs-labor** | 25% | |
| Indirect costs-overhead*** | 20% | |
| Net profit | 35% | |
| Monthly Cash Flow Projections: | ||
| Monthly gross sales | $2,700 | |
| Raw materials | $540 | |
| Labor | 675 | |
| Overhead | 540 | |
| Total expenses | $1,755 | |
| Projected net monthly profit (35%) | $945 | |
| Annual Cash Flow Projections: | ||
| Annual gross sales | $32,400 | |
| Raw materials | $6,480 | |
| Labor | 8,100 | |
| Overhead | 6,480 | |
| Total expenses | $21,060 | |
| Projected net annual profit (10%) | $11,340 | |
| *Raw material costs include: | ||
| Yeast | ||
| Flour | ||
| Salt | ||
| Eggs | ||
| Sugar | ||
| Butter | ||
| Baking soda | ||
| Baking powder | ||
| Flavorings | ||
| **Direct labor costs include: | ||
| 1 Baker's Assistant: for bread and roll preparation | ||
| 1 Baker's Assistant: for cakes and pastry preparation | ||
| 1 Baker | ||
| 1 Cake decorator | ||
| 3 Sales / Delivery people | ||
| 2 Helpers | ||
| 1 Cashier / Accountant | ||
| 2 Cleaning people | ||
| ***Indirect overhead costs include: | ||
| General manager | ||
| Marketing and advertising | ||
| Utilities | ||
| Licenses and permits | ||
| Facilities rental | ||
| Travel | ||
| Training | ||
| Insurance | ||
| Payroll expenses |
Further information can be found in: