Hopeful Beginnings for Kebun Amai

Behind every brand, there is always a story worth telling. This is the story of Kebun Amai.

In the Jakun tribe, the word ‘Amai‘ translates to aunty. Lamenting on the warmth of eating home cooked meals prepared by the women in our families, Kebun Amai tries to encapsulate feelings of familiarity and passion by supporting our hardworking, selfless and joyful Orang Asli farmers! So, what is Kebun Amai and why did we start this?

The changing livelihood of the Orang Asli

As hunter-gatherers by nature, many Orang Asli families lived by gathering from the forest. However, over the recent years, many Orang Asli have had to transition from forest gathering (such as gathering bertam or fishing) to agriculture as their main source of livelihood. This is due in large part by increased deforestation for logging and palm oil.

As natural resources in the forest and river became increasingly scarce, many Orang Asli had no other options but to adapt. Although many villagers are keen on farming, they face a multitude of challenges that prevent them from farming successfully.

The lack of capital and experience, exacerbated by degraded and infertile soil, makes farming extremely challenging for Orang Asli farmers. During the MCO lockdown, many villagers resorted to only eating tapioca and flour, as many lost their income and had to depend on food-aid. This lack of adequate food not only results in hunger and food insecurity but also malnutrition, particularly in children.

Regenerative Farming as the answer

Understanding the importance of having access to sufficient, safe and nutritious food, we decided to work with the Orang Asli farmers to find a sustainable solution to help them overcome farming challenges and gain food security for years to come.

After months of research and work on the ground with our farmers, we introduced Syntropic Agroforestry (SA). SA is a type of regenerative farming method that aims to rebuild the health of the soil. This rejuvenates the ecosystem to allow a diverse variety of plants to grow. In the long term, these farms will become self-sufficient, providing farmers with nutrient-dense and organic food whilst regrowing the lost forest of the Orang Asli.

Building a network of and for farmers

After many months of intense work on their farms, our Orang Asli farmers started to see the fruits of their labour! Many of them were able to harvest a variety of vegetables such as okra, cucumber, lemongrass and more.

However, the journey to self-sufficient farming does not happen overnight or in a straight line. To ensure that our farmers are able to confide in one another and share farming experiences, challenges and knowledge, we organised the Jaringan Akar programme, a network of and for Orang Asli farmers.

We have successfully held three Jaringan Akar programmes in the Orang Asli villages this year!

Economic Empowerment for Orang Asli Farmers

As farmers gradually overcome farming challenges and begin to harvest their vegetable and fruit crops, they are now faced with another challenge– market access to sell their produce.

Many farmers have difficulty in selling their produce to nearby towns due to the remoteness of the villages and lack of transportation. As a result, many farmers become overly dependent on the middlemen, who purchase in bulk at very low costs. The middlemen are also highly unreliable as they are not consistent. This lack of market access results in major food wastage.

In order to bridge market access barriers, we set up the Kebun Amai to support our farmers in marketing and selling their fresh produce.

Through connections with wholesalers, grocers and the communities within Pahang and Klang Valley area, we hope to empower our farmers and support their livelihood through income generation.

In October 2022, we officially kickstarted Kebun Amai’s first marketplace in the village of Kg. Bukit Biru, in conjunction with the Bursa Vibe volunteer program! In anticipation for the big day, many farmers harvested their crops and came together to sell their produce at the market.

The huge assortment of vegetables ranging from fresh brinjal, brazilian spinach, bananas, chilis, corn, lemongrass and more, was such an inspiring sight to see!

Aside from fresh produce, we are also experimenting on the different ways to combat food wastage by using the farmer’s produce to make homemade products that are long-lasting, nutritious and tasty! So far, we have successfully produced dried fruits such as pineapples and bananas, as well as pineapple jam.

Hopeful beginnings for Kebun Amai

By working together with the farmers on the planning and execution of the marketing and distribution of their produce, the farmers are able to gain both knowledge and experience in selling their produce. In the long term, we hope that farmers will be able to manage their own supply chain operation.

From sustainable farming through SA to economic empowerment through Kebun Amai, we hope that these initiatives will become the stepping stones for Orang Asli families to become resilient and self-sufficient for many years to come!

If you would like to support the livelihood of Orang Asli farmers, you may purchase their fresh produce by signing up here! You can also order Kebun Amai’s homemade products on Shopee or Whatsapp us at 013-5230587.