On September 26, Ambassador Sung Y. Kim joined the grand opening of the new Tempe Azaki factory, the largest tempeh factory in the world. Tempe Azaki imports 100 percent high-quality U.S. soybeans and sells value-added tempeh product, both domestically and now abroad, including to the United States, fueling Indonesia’s growing economy. Thanks to capacity building funded partially by the American people, the company now processes approximately 55 metric tons of U.S. soybeans per day, up significantly from 0.5 metric tons per day in 2015.
Ambassador Kim:Selamat pagi, everyone. Director General Ibu Reni Yanita, Pak Cucup and colleagues from Tempe Azaki, representatives of the U.S. Soybean Export Council, and distinguished guests from the tempeh and soybean industry, I am delighted to join you for this special occasion.
During my three years as U.S. Ambassador to Indonesia, I have become a huge fan of tempe. I like it a lot. In fact, I think I like it more than my Indonesian friends do.
Tempe Azaki is a wonderful success story of collaboration between U.S. soy farmers and Indonesian tempeh producers. In the past few years, Tempe Azaki has ramped up tempeh production significantly after receiving extensive training from the U.S. Soybean Export Council with assistance from the Indonesian Tempe Forum.
Today we mark the opening of the largest tempeh for export factory in the world. This factory has the capacity to process 55 metric tons of soybeans per day. That’s enough soybeans to fill a swimming pool each day. Every day!
I’m excited that with increased production and improved quality, tempe is reaching foreign markets. In July this year, Tempe Azaki sent its first tempe shipment to the United States and my own hometown of Los Angeles, California.
With the large Indonesian diaspora in the United States and growing public demand for versatile plant-based proteins and healthy snacks, I am confident the popularity of tempeh in the United States will grow.
Congratulations to Tempe Azaki on their success in increasing production, improving quality, and their export achievements. We hope they will inspire other small and medium businesses to send delicious and nutritious products to the United States. Thank you.
