BALIK PULAU, April 3 — While the people are grumbling about the scorching hot weather, it is a much-welcomed environment for belacan (fermented shrimp paste) and salted fish entrepreneurs in Kampung Kuala Sungai Pinang and Pulau Betong here.
The prolonged hot and dry weather not only speeds up the drying process, but also improves the quality of the product and saves production time, which is a big advantage for the traditional industry.
Chop Kim Hoa brand belacan entrepreneur, Lo Eng Joo, 78, said the scorching hot weather is very suitable for producing high-quality belacan because the drying process can be done naturally without rain interruption.
He said that producing belacan is not only complicated, but also takes a long time before it becomes the final product, making the weather factor very critical to ensure that the product is not easily damaged and lasts a long time.
“Usually the process of drying belacan takes a day, depending on the weather conditions. If it is dried at 10 am, it can be taken off around 6 pm but if it rains, the drying period becomes longer,” he said when met at his family’s factory in Pulau Betong.
He explained that the process had to be repeated at least three times involving drying and using machines, besides the belacan having to be fermented for three months before going through final drying and packaging.
Lo said that about half a ton of belacan was processed every day using geragau shrimp supplied from Terengganu, Perak and Selangor.
He said that the business, which was founded by his grandfather more than 70 years ago, is now continued with his two younger brothers and assisted by two other workers among family members.
Meanwhile, a salted fish entrepreneur in Kampung Kuala Sungai Pinang, Teoh Yoog Mooi, 60, said that the current hot weather had allowed production to increase to 300 kilogrammes per day compared to less than 100 kilogrammes during the rainy season.
She said the situation was also influenced by the fish supply factor because fishermen went to sea more often when the weather was good.
“I only produce two types of fish, namely duri fish (marine catfish) and gelama fish (croaker). For large-sized fish, it usually takes up to a week to dry completely because the flesh is thicker but now it is only around four days.
“For smaller gelama fish, the drying process takes at least two days compared to three days during humid weather or the rainy season,” she said.
Teoh said dry weather also provides an advantage in terms of quality when the salted fish produced looks clearer compared to if exposed to rain or through a drying period that is too long, thus increasing its appeal to buyers.
She said there is no issue of overstocking because she has regular customers who come every day, with a selling price of RM15 per kilogramme for large fish and RM10 per kilogramme for small fish.
“I understand that many are uncomfortable with the hot weather because they get tired easily, but for me it makes the entire process of making salted fish easier, from soaking, marinating, drying to packaging,” she said.
Despite her age, Teoh still handles the entire process with fish supplies sourced from local fishermen. — Bernama
