KUNAK, Nov 24 — Despite relying on traditional methods to process anchovies, entrepreneur Nurmalasari Tianggi from Kampung Pengkalan Laut near Kunak earns between RM5,000 and RM7,000 a month.

Nurmalasari, 31, told Bernama that the dried anchovy business, run by her family since 1994, depends entirely on manual labour.

The mother of three explained that her father sets out to sea as early as 3 am to buy anchovies directly from local fishermen, paying around RM280 for a large basket, and returns home between 7 and 8 am.

The fresh anchovies are then boiled for about five minutes before being sun-dried.

Once dried, the anchovies are sorted by size, a process carried out collaboratively with her family.

After sorting, the product is ready to be sold to customers across Kunak, Semporna, Tawau, and other areas in Sabah.

“Typically, customers purchase between 100 kg and 500 kg of anchovies a day. We store them in jute sacks, each weighing around 23 kg.

“So far, all our customers have been satisfied with our anchovies because they are clean, and occasionally we run out of stock due to high demand,” Nurmalasari said, adding that during the off-season, particularly in April, fresh anchovies are sometimes unavailable for processing.

Looking ahead, Nurmalasari hopes relevant agencies can provide support in the form of a boat engine, a stove for boiling anchovies, and a sorting machine to accelerate production.

“If possible, I hope to establish my own brand of anchovies and export them from Sabah,” she said. — Bernama