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View all search resultsWomen turn forest foods into new livelihoods
What grows wild in Indonesia’s forests is finding a new place on the table, as women from forest communities turn overlooked ingredients into food products, delicacies and new sources of income.
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Women forest defenders from Puan Rimba explain the forest-sourced ingredients featured in a lunch they served to guests on Sept. 30 in South Jakarta.
(Courtesy of/The Asia Foundation)
W
hat grows wild in Indonesia’s forests is finding a new place on the table, as women from forest communities turn overlooked ingrefordients into food products, delicacies and new sources of income.
The possibilities were on display at a lunch in South Jakarta last week, where seven women forest defenders from South Sumatra, North Kalimantan and West Nusa Tenggara introduced diners to ingredients that may be unfamiliar to many.
The meal opened with a refreshing ade made from batoko plum, locally called lobi-lobi. It was followed by rattan shoots made into soup, earthy steamed wild splitgill mushrooms, fermented kluwek (black nut) resembling shrimp paste, or terasi, and nutmeg-infused tea.
The main ingredients were brought from their respective regions. Each dish came with a story of where the ingredients grew and what they mean to local communities.
The dining experience was put on by Puan Rimba, a group of women forest defenders seeking to bring undervalued local forest ingredients into the world of gastronomy. They are turning them into specialty products that support their livelihoods while helping protect the forests they depend on.
Read also: ‘Atatbon’: Protecting forests beyond the harvest
Tessa Pranisti, from Semende, Muara Enim, South Sumatra, is one of them. She said she found herself enjoying foraging in the forest around her village, which led her to join the women-led social forestry business group (KUPS) Pandan Indah in 2023. The group manages around 141 hectares of village forest.
