Article
Indonesian Tempe Movement (ITM), an organization founded by a three-generation food scientists in Indonesia, has rediscovered the centuries old traditional food – Tempe – and explored the use of different types of leaves in wrapping it. Although modernity has swept across all aspects of life, including food consumptions, many regions in Indonesia still face significant challenges related to malnutrition particularly growth stunting due to economic and natural factors.
Traditional food, like Tempe, which can be made from different beans, has been proven to be nutritious and environmentally friendly, in addition to being readily available and more affordable compared to meat sources. This article discusses how the traditional practice of making Tempe can empower a community, especially women, by reconnecting them with the food of their ancestors, who relied on this staple for hundreds of years, even under adverse conditions.
The History of Tempe
The history of Tempe began in the 1600s in the area around Surakarta City, Central Java. The oldest record of black soybeans as a raw material for Tempe appeared in the book Serat Sri Tanjung, written around the 12th or 13th century (Astuti et al., 2000). In 1815, a prince who would later become known as The Pakubuwono the V, King of Java.
In 1815, a prince who would later become known as The Pakubuwono V, King of Java wrote Serat Centhini (Astuti et al., 2000). Serat Centhini contains stories, legends, moral teachings, and culture, including the story of Tempe as an indigenous food of the Indonesian people, especially the Javanese.
From a small region in central Java, Tempe makes its way to the world. It is introduced and consumed in the continents of Asia, Africa, North America, South America, Europe, and Australia. Shurtleff & Aoyagi (2010; 2020) stated that since 1896, Tempe had been mentioned in a Dutch article by Prinsen Geerlings. In 1912, Tempe was introduced in Japan, India, and Suriname in 1936; then in 1958 in the US and in Zambia in 1971.
Indonesian Tempe Movement Program
Indonesian Tempe Movement (ITM) is a non-profit organization started in 2014 by a three-generation family of food scientists: myself, my son Dr. Amadeus Ahnan-Winarno, and my father, Prof. Dr. F.G. Winarno. Our mission is to raise awareness of Tempe as a healthy, affordable, and sustainable food through social media, conferences, workshops, and social programs.
In the beginning, ITM studied traditional methods of making Tempe and then simplified these methods to make them easier to teach to others. While simplifying the making of Tempe, ITM also focused on ensuring that Tempe production remains both hygienic and environmentally friendly. We created an activator liquid made from fruit to facilitate the acidification of beans (pre-fermentation process). With this method, we shorten the process, and at the same time, we save fuel and minimize waste disposal.
With our simplified making process, we are able to bring the expertise and Tempe-making workshop to various places, such as jails and correctional facilities, drug rehabilitation centers, educators for children with special needs, senior citizen communities, mothers in urban villages, and rural areas. Recently, Tempe-making workshops have gained popularity among urbanities in Indonesia, leading us to hold hands-on Tempe workshops in several 5-star hotels.
In 2023, ITM collaborated with the Regina Pacis School in Bogor City, West Java, to conduct a large-scale Tempe-making event with 1533 participants, including alums, students, teachers, and parents. Mixed participants from Kindergarten Elementary, Middle, and High School enthusiasts followed the instructions and make Tempe together. Those activities were recorded as a new record by the Indonesian Museum of Record, breaking the latest record of the most prominent Tempe-making participants.
Food of Hope
Compared to beans, the Tempe fermentation process using Rhizopus starter increases crude and soluble protein (Bavia et al., 2012), making it easier to digest. Tempe could be an alternative and meat substitute where animal food is scarce. It contains calcium, iron, zinc, folate, biotin, vitamin B-12, probiotics, prebiotics, and anti-cancer isoflavones (Ahnan-Winarno et al., 2021). Additionally, Tempe also contains folate, which is essential for the development of the baby’s nervous system and cognitive functions.
The prevalence of stunting in Indonesia remains high, The 2022 Indonesia Nutrition Status Survey (SSGI) reported a rate of 21,6 %. Stunting is primarily caused by chronic nutrient deficiencies, particularly protein, which is crucial for the growth and development of babies up to 2 years. Adequate nutrition during the first two years of life is critical; inadequate food intake between 6 to 23 months is linked to growth faltering, which increases the risks of stunting and can lead to various degenerative diseases in adulthood (Marriott et al., 2012).
Currently, the Indonesian government is promoting the consumption of animal protein to help reduce stunting rates. However, people in rural and urban villages have limited access to animal food due to economic and natural factors. Tempe, as a substitute, is cheaper and easier to obtain and process than animal protein.
Tempe is approximately eight times cheaper than animal meat. A large block of Tempe costs only 15,000 rupiahs (0.87 EURO), while a kilogram of meat costs 120,000 rupiahs (7 EURO)
Originally, Tempe was made from black soybeans. Other beans like green beans, red beans, peanuts, edamame, and even unutilized beans like jackfruit seeds can also be used substrates to make Tempe. Different types of beans, when used to make Tempe, distinct nutritional characteristics and aroma. Various types of beans that grow in Indonesia have the potential to be processed into Tempe, making it possible to turn them into a source of protein, especially in remote areas with protein shortages.
Empowering Women
Young mothers often lack the knowledge to make healthy food for their babies. Even though food ingredients are available around them, they do not understand which foods are healthy. Therefore, providing education to women is one of the activities carried out by ITM. While teaching Tempe-making workshops, we teach mothers how to make nutritious weaning food and raise a healthy child, especially in stunting areas. Young mothers generally have limited time to make weaning food due to other responsibilities aside from taking care of their babies. Compared to meat, Tempe is easier and faster to cook.
Tempe is commonly eaten with rice as a side dish, but it can also be processed into various foods such as snacks, chips, cookies, gelato, chocolate, etc. We have also introduced Tempe as an ingredient for skincare. Exploring and creating Tempe can open opportunities for women.
Mothers in rural areas and densely populated areas can make Tempe in small batches, while selling their products to neighbours to earn additional income. It doesn't need sophisticated tools and high-level education to make a small batch of Tempe. It can be done using bamboo utensils. Tempe must be fermented for 24 to 48 hours at room temperature, ideally between 30°C to 35°C. You can easily find the tutorial at https://artsandculture.google.com/story/rQWhN2V0O43Wag. Today, 7,400 people have participated in the Tempe workshop. Some participants have become small and medium Tempe entrepreneurs in Indonesia and other countries.
Sustainability
With the rise of a new understanding that the consumption and production of animal foods are not sustainable from a public health and environmental perspective, Tempe could be a favourable choice due to its health benefits, affordability, and sustainability. Vegans and vegetarians usually have difficulty getting vitamin B12 from non-animal foods (Stabler & Allen, 2004), Tempe can provide vitamin B12 (Keuth & Bisping, 1994).
The Central Bureau of Statistics Indonesia stated that around 54% of Indonesians are Z generation and millennials. Hopefully, promoting Tempe to the young generation will make them realize that the food they can easily obtain is healthy and environmentally friendly. The protein delivery efficiency energy score of Tempe is almost 4-fold highly efficient compared to beef, while the protein delivery efficiency greenhouse gasses (GHG) scores of Tempe were 22.22 fold that of meat (Ahnan-Winarno et al., 2021; González et al., 2011)
For almost 400 years, Tempe has been a staple food in Indonesia, long before the invention of plastic Tempe is traditionally wrapped in leaves like banana, teak, or hibiscus. Some area in Indonesia, Tempe is wrapped in endemic leaves like simpor leaf, and cacao leaf. Although much Tempe is now wrapped in plastic, Tempe wrapped in leaves remains popular. Tempe wrapped in leaves has a slightly different aroma, as the fragrance of of each leaf is absorbed into the final product.
ITM delved deeper into how various edible leaves growing in Indonesia can be used as Tempe wrappers. Indonesia's plant biodiversity is one of the largest in the world. Multiple types of plants, including edible leaves, grow well. Some regions use specific types of leaves to wrap their traditional foods. ITM curated these leaves and experimented with wrapping Tempe in various kinds. We found that 28 types of leaves can be used as Tempe wrappers. The Tempe-making workshop consistently teaches people to wrap their Tempe with leaves to minimize single-plastic use.
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Wida Winarno is food anthropologist, social entrepreneur, and advocate for food literacy, known for her work in promoting tempe, a traditional Indonesian fermented soybean product. Wida founded the Tempe Movement to promote tempe worldwide and educate people about its health benefits, sustainability, and cultural importance. She uses her food technology background to champion tempe as a nutritious, eco-friendly food that can help address global food security. She holds Doctor in Public Health on malnutrition-stunting prevention at the University of Indonesia, and food technology from Agricultural Institute of Bogor.
Disclaimer: This published work was prepared with the support of the Heinrich Böll Stiftung. The views and analysis contained in the work are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of the foundation. The author is responsible for any liability claims against copyright breaches of graphics, photograph, images, audio, and text used.
References
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