Recovery of Energy and Materials From Small-Scale Tofu Processing Industries in Indonesia

Abstract

Tofu factories are spread across Indonesia as tofu is a cheap source of protein and favorite food for almost all population groups. Most tofu producers are micro/small business owners. In addition to soybeans, clean water is the most important input to produce tofu curd. It will generate a large amount of wastewater and solid waste, which still contains significant amounts of easily biodegradable organic matter. There are often complaints and protests from the public about the pollution in air and water in the area from the discharged waste. Tofu producers know about this, but their limited income and capital force them to ignore the environmental issues. The potential of tofu waste treatment technologies to produce new products or clean materials that can be fed back into the production process is discussed and reviewed to ensure all input materials in the tofu process can be used optimally and efficiently in a closed-loop production process. And it could be implemented easily and economically by the factories.