Feature – Taiwan mission teaches Karawang primary school students food technology

The Taiwan Technical Mission in Indonesia’s Karawang district, West Java province, manages 2.5 hectares of agricultural land in collaboration with farmers who grow a number of local vegetables and new vegetable varieties from Taiwan, such as red long beans, Taiwanese okra, white bitter melon, and red okra.

 

Karawang, W Java (Indonesia Window) – The sun was blazing all day long on Thursday (Oct. 24), hitting the Taiwan Technical Mission (TTM) agricultural facility which is located in Indonesia’s West Karawang sub-district, Karawang district, West Java province.

However, the scorching sun did not dampen the enthusiasm of 63 fourth-grade students from Karawang’s Integrated Islamic School Mentari Ilmu, along with their teachers, who were eager to learn presentations from the Taiwanese agricultural team and enjoy the adventure of sowing seeds as well as harvesting various Taiwanese vegetables.

During the visit to the TTM agricultural facility, the students were surprised by the presence of Cellica Nurrachadiana, a former district head of Karawang for the periods of 2016-2020 and 2021-2023.

On this occasion, Cellica expressed her appreciation for the Taiwan Technical Mission’s presence, which has supported the government and the people of Karawang, especially in the agricultural sector.

“The TTM in Karawang was established in 2018, when I was a district head of Karawang for six years, up until today,” she said in her opening remarks, initiating the students’ visit program.

In addition to Karawang sub-district, she noted that the TTM also operates in Jayakerta sub-district to address drought and assist in agricultural development.

In front of the Mentari Ilmu students, Cellica emphasized that Karawang district is the national rice granary. “There are 97,000 hectares of land in Karawang, producing 13 million tons of crops for the entire population of Indonesia,” she said.

“Meanwhile, Karawang only needs 300,000 tons of food, so who is the rest for? For the whole of Indonesia. So if there is no Karawang, we cannot eat rice. Therefore, we must maintain Karawang as the national rice granary and the center of national food security,” she stated, receiving enthusiastic applause from the students.

Cellica, who is now a national legislator hoped that the collaboration with the Taiwan agricultural mission would continue, particularly in Karawang and in other regions throughout Indonesia.

In the presentation on agriculture, one of the TTM’s experts Owen Peng, showed pictures of various vegetables grown on the farmland of the Taiwan agricultural mission.

“Does anyone know what this vegetable is?” Owen asked the students while pointing to a picture of red okra.

Although this vegetable is not commonly found in Indonesia, several Mentari Ilmu students raised their hands, trying to answer.

Owen and his Indonesian colleagues then displayed more images showing unique vegetables rarely found in traditional Indonesian markets, including kyuri (Japanese cucumber), zucchini, purple corn, and white bitter melon.

After learning about the unique vegetables from Taiwan grown in Karawang, the students were invited to sow seeds and harvest vegetables in the greenhouse, managed collaboratively by the TTM experts and Karawang farmers.

A TTM’s expert, Jacky Liu, who accompanied the students to harvest vegetables in the greenhouse, explained the process of sowing, planting, and harvesting vegetables.

“Vegetables can also be grown in water. The results are just as good as when we plant in soil,” he explained to the students while holding a handful of takecai (pagoda mustard), known in Indonesia as ‘sawi pagoda’.

After a brief presentation about agriculture, sowing and harvesting vegetables, the Mentari Ilmu students entered the TTM kitchen to attend a cooking class featuring Taiwanese vegetable dishes, such as omelets filled with okra, steamed tofu wrapped in mustard greens, and steamed spinach.

The students enjoyed the healthy menu, and none of them left any of the special dishes uneaten.

A supervising teacher, Lia Susanti, praised the warm welcome from the Taiwan Technical Mission during the school program called ‘Thematic Field Visit (locally known as its abbreviation Kulantik),’ which is part of the independent curriculum.

“I personally did not expect such a warm reception, and there were so many activities for our students here,” she said during the visit.

She explained that the students’ visit to the Taiwan agricultural facility aligns with this year’s thematic learning theme, ‘Build My Spirit and Body’.

“At school, the students are taught to grow medicinal plants. So, this visit to the TTM is very beneficial for them,” Lia said, adding that the students are expected to present their experiences from the visit later.

The Taiwan Technical Mission is part of the International Cooperation and Development Fund (ICDF), dedicated to enhancing socio-economic development, improving human resources, and promoting economic relations in various partner developing countries.

In Karawang, the Taiwan Technical Mission manages 2.5 hectares of agricultural land in partnership with farmers who grow a number of local vegetables and new vegetable varieties from Taiwan, such as red long beans, Taiwanese okra, white bitter melon, and red okra.

Additionally, the TTM partners with several supermarkets that directly purchase the harvest from Indonesian farmers.

Reporting by Indonesia Window