Zahra Khan, Reviving Local Food of Gorontalo

KOMPAS/KRISTIAN OKA PRASETYADI

Zahra Khan

For years, paddy farmers in Gorontalo, Sulawesi, have been resigned to the expansion of hybrid corn designated by the government as its prized commodity. As a local food activist, Zahra Khan, 36, refuses to remain silent. She is striving to give value to local farmers’ products in the form of local rice varieties.

By afternoon on Thursday (6/10/2022), a man entered the yard of Zahra’s house in Huntu village, Bulango district, Bone Bolango regency. “Any brown rice?” asked the man.

Zahra immediately handed him a bag of rice taken from a pile on a glassed-in rack. On the front side of the vacuum-packed product is a sticker with the logo of Goronto, the name of the micro business she has been running since 2016. The slogan on the sticker reads: locally produced, proudly consumed.

The bag of brown rice weighs 1 kilogram and costs Rp 30,000 (US$1.91). Brown rice is white rice with the outer layer of its grains left intact in the process of hulling. This outer layer contains aleurone protein capable of lowering the glycemic index to around 50, less than ordinary white, which is about 72, so it is good for our health.

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Besides brown rice, Zahra also sells reddish-brown rice. No less than 30 kg of rice are sold monthly. She derives brown rice from a 2.2-hectare paddy field owned by her father-in-law. “The rice varieties are mekongga and situ bagendit with seedlings provided by government aid,” she said.

When the rice stock from her father-in-law’s field runs out, she will buy rice from other paddy farmers around South Huntu village. She tightly controls the hulling process to prevent any adulteration.

Lately, said Zahra, brown and reddish-brown rice sales in Gorontalo had made considerable progress. Some of their consumers are people who want to avoid the risk of diabetes. “Since the pandemic, people have become more aware of wholesome food,” noted Zahra.

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The Goronto brand of brown rice and brown rice belongs to Zahra Khan.

She affirmed that what she was doing was not a mere matter of scooping profit from the niche market but rather infusing new spirit into local farmers. So far, rice produced by Gorontalo farmers has been edged out by those from South, West and North Sulawesi. Consequently, local farmers’ rice is accumulating. To avoid big losses, farmers sell their rice at a low price.

The system regulating the rice commodity does not favor farmers. Farmers have difficulty obtaining fertilizer because nearly its entire supply is used for corn fields covering 400,000 hectares in Gorontalo, 10 times more vast than paddy fields. It is focused on hybrid corn, instead of the local variety of Gorontalo.

I’m trying to sell with a vision to raise the position of local food in Gorontalo.

The regional administration of Gorontalo itself is confused about how to maintain local paddy varieties like panelo, maraya, bokungo, brauna and ponda. The strongly rooted market system, based on the principle of absolute advantage, has weakened the spirit of paddy farmers.

Zahra is doing what she can by processing and selling wholesome food from local rice. This attempt is not without challenges because locally produced brown and reddish-brown rice has to compete with other products from abroad.

“So, I’m trying to sell with a vision to raise the position of local food in Gorontalo, while we also have superior seedlings. By consuming local food, we contribute to the reduction of carbon footprints, protection of the earth,” she said.

Flavor

The success in uplifting the standing of local rice depends not only on social campaigns but also on flavor and aroma. With this notion, Zahra and her two peers initiated a micro business, called Nasi Baskom. It prepared various culinary specialties with local ingredients like tuna and skipjack to be relished along with brown or reddish-brown rice.

When Nasi Baskom closed due to the pandemic in 2020, Zahra started a catering service with Goronto. The food she offers is corn soup known as binthe biluhuta served with nike freshwater fish, iloni (broiled) chicken and other dishes. All their ingredients, especially sources of protein and carbohydrate, are produced by fishermen, livestock breeders and farmers of Gorontalo. This is part of her effort to promote local food.

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Zahra Khan

“I don’t have a fixed menu. All the food I prepare depends on available stocks and whatever is sold in the market provided by our suppliers,” she said.

From this business, she can earn between Rp 5 million to Rp 10 million per month. But again, this is not just a matter of business but rather of the preservation of local food and cuisine.

She has also tried to write various stories, culinary compositions and instructions of cooking the cuisine she sells, initially in her account called Bakul Goronto on Instagram and Facebook.

“Gorontalo is short of writings about its cultural products while the number of narrators knowledgeable about local food is decreasing. I therefore hope my stories will be found by people within the next 10 years, for instance, who search for references on Gorontalo food,” she said.

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To this end, she and her husband, Awaluddin Ahmad, 36, have set up a Food Studio as part of the Huntu Art District (Hartdisk). The Food Studio now has ten women in South Huntu village as members, who take part in promoting local food and culinary delights.

On Saturdays, a kind of art market called Ambuwa is organized in the yard of the gallery of Hartdisk, only a stone’s throw from Zahra’s house. On this occasion, the Food Studio members sell various snacks typical of Gorontalo, such as sagela or roa porridge, diniyohu sweet sago porridge and many others.

The weekly Ambuwa serves as a means of stimulating the self-confidence of the Food Studio women to join the promotion of local food with local ingredients.

Preserving local food and cuisine constitutes a long struggle. Zahra admits that her endeavor is only a small part of this struggle.

Zahra Khan

Born: Gorontalo, 29 November 1985

Husband: Awaluddin Ahmad, 36

Education:

- Bachelor’s degree in Fisheries Technology, Brawijaya University, Malang (2003-2008)

- Master’s degree in Food Science, IPB University, Bogor (2010-2012)

Occupation: Goronto Catering Service

This article was translated by Aris Prawira.