ABOUT THIS SERIES:

Each issue, mylombok will highlight a vendor from the Lombok Eco Flea Market – the monthly pop-up market that offers the best of Lombok’s eco-friendly crafts, foods, cosmetics and more.  

Artisan Vanilla from Lombok Island

Lombok Vanilla Founder/CEO Harrys Munandar is one of a growing number of millennial start-up vanilla farmers in the southeast Asian nation, who is eager to revive spice shipments to diversify farming exports, which is currently dominated by palm oil.

mylombok Magazine recently spoke with Harrys to learn more about his artisan vanilla products and how he aims to make his products known worldwide.

Where did your inspiration come from? 

The interest in cultivating one of the world's most valuable spices was sparked at a time when farmers were leaving their farmlands for jobs in congested cities.

Although Madagascar remains the gold standard as far as vanilla quality is concerned, Indonesia has strong potential to become an alternative region, in terms of quantity and quality.

We aim to make Lombok one of the best producers of vanilla and vanilla by-products in the world.

How did you get started?

It all started in 2018, right after the big earthquakes in Lombok. Before the earthquakes we ran a villa management company, which looked after almost 35 villas, then the earthquakes hit without warning, so we had to close most of the villa's due to the damage they sustained and less tourists to the island.

During the crisis, we had a lot of friends who came from overseas to help those who were affected by the earthquakes, and during that time, they not only volunteered but also bought commodities like coffee, cacao and vanilla, to help most of the affected people in the northern areas of Lombok.

What happened next?

Accidentally, we became an exporter! Our foreign villa clients wanted to help the earthquake victims by selling their products to overseas buyers at a fair price, so we cut out all the middle men, and only bought directly from the local farmers.

We ended up with a total of 5 co-op farms around Lombok Island, eventually focusing only on vanilla beans because of its wider market overseas.

The Covid-19 pandemic boosted consumer demand for vanilla, as well as packaged food companies, which resulted in the exports growing by almost 10 times during lockdown, and also put Lombok Island as one of the high quality vanilla bean producers on the global map.

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You have plenty of vanilla by-products, what materials do you use?

Anything can use vanilla, from food to body spa and fragrances - we always customize products to suit one’s needs and budget.

We only use locally sourced ingredients for our by-products, and we also collaborate with local artisans here in Lombok. Our vanilla beans are grown organically on our co-op farms around Lombok and thanks to local Lombok businesses, most of the restaurants, cafes and hotels on Lombok & the Gili Islands support us by buying our vanilla products.

Have you always cared about the planet?

As a proud member of Lombok Eco Market, we are always looking for ways to cut down on our single use plastic usage, currently we use reusable glass jars and paper packaging for the local market.

70% of our vanilla products are being exported overseas, so we strictly select our vanilla beans from farmers, who grow the beans organically and which  are free from any artificial fertilizers and fungicides, in order to maintain a high quality. Our vanilla beans are also grown from non-GMO vanilla plants and we use organic fertilizers and pesticides.

How are you helping others think differently?

Most of our farmers are located in very remote areas, with stunning views of nature, so to help them boost their income, we have also created agrotourism that not only gives them face-to-face experiences with our clients from overseas, but also gives them an opportunity to earn an extra income from the agrotourism.

We are also doing some basic hospitality training in our facility, for all the young generation farmers, not only teaching basic English, but also how to create community based tourism in their villages.

How are you changing minds?

Indonesia is the 2nd largest vanilla producer in the world after Madagascar, but most of the local people don't use it in their daily lives. To them vanilla is only known in its synthetic form of white granulated powder, which is bad for your health.

So, we are currently making a very affordable option in the form of pure vanilla powder, which can be infused into daily products like: salt, sugar, syrups etc.

With help from our culinary expert friends, we teach them how to infuse vanilla or ‘vanili’ in Bahasa Indonesian, into their local cuisine and we have even created a group called ‘budayakanmenggunakanvanilla’, which means ‘vanilla culture’.

What advice can you give to others who are interested in starting their own sustainable business?

The truth is that entrepreneurship is hard. It's not all about making money and being a boss. There are many sacrifices that you have to make, and it can be very stressful. If you're not prepared to take on more stress in your life, then entrepreneurship isn't for you. You need to be able to embrace stress and work long hours if you want to be successful.

Start small but dream big. Find some like minded people who not only support you, but also make you into a better person. Enjoy every challenge that arises - there's always a silver lining with every challenge. I even met my wife during this entrepreneurship journey and feel so blessed. 

Next Market: Find Lombok Vanilla at the next Lombok Eco Flea Market – see market schedule at www.lombokecofleamarket.com

Lombok Vanilla Instagram: @lombokvanilla

Lombok Vanilla Facebook: @lombokvanilla, Lombok Island