C. Java noodle makers use toxic bleaching substances

By Prabandari

KLATEN, Central Java (JP): Manjung village, about 30 kilometers east of Yogyakarta, has long been famous as a producer of high quality white noodles, locally called soun.

The business has always been a lucrative, providing employment to many locals. But environmentalists warn that the toxic byproducts from the business is polluting the environment.

Joko Prasetyo, an environmental expert, says that the use of bleaching agents in the production process pose dangers for the long run. Untreated waste from the bleaching process can result in byproducts such as chlorine and dioxin.

He proposes that research be conducted to learn the level of these byproducts and the menace they cause.

According to Bambang Prayitno, a biologist, the maximum allowable level of chlorine in sewage water is 3 mg/liter. Chlorine pollutants are more dangerous if mixed with other toxic products such as pesticide residue, he says.

J.K. Fawell and S. Hunt in their book Environmental Toxicology Organic Pollutants say that chlorine can cause cancer.

Agus, the owner of Bintang Tiga, a white noodle factory, said that his factory can produce 400 kg of noodles a day. He uses calcium hypochlorite as the bleaching agent. He mixes about 500 grams of the agent with 100 kg of flour.

"Before the economic crisis (began in 1997), calcium hypochlorite was cheap, so I mixed 1 kg of it for every 100 kg of flour. But when the rupiah continued depreciating against the dollar, prices soared and I reduced the proportions," Agus said.

In Manjung there are more than 50 white noodle producers like Agus. The average production of a factory is 400 kg to 600 kg a day. If one factory needs 2 kg to 3 kg of Calcium hypochlorite per day, then they use 100 kg to 150 kg of the toxic substance a day.

Although almost all the white noodle producers in Manjung use calcium hypochlorite, there is no waste water treatment plant there. They dump the waste into the sewer which runs into the river. During the rainy season, the sewage system often overflows, inundating the Manjung village.

Only a few noodle makers in the village use mechanical equipment. In the traditional factory, workers stir the mixture of flour, water and calcium hypochlorite with their feet. They do not realize their health is at risk. They look happy at work, singing along to music blaring from the radio.

There are two grades of white noodles made in Manjung Village. The first grade is whiter and more expensive. The lower grade noodle has lower chlorine content.

"People in big cities like to buy the first grade because it looks better and is tastier than the second grade. We usually sell the first grade to East Java, because they consume huge amounts of white noodles to make soto soup," Agus said.

Local people prefer the less expensive grade of white noodle. Sale of white noodles in major holiday seasons, such as Lebaran and Nyadran, usually raises threefold. Nyadran is a Javanese traditional thanksgiving day celebrated after the paddy harvest season.

On Nyadran, a great number of migrants from across Indonesia return to their home village in Klaten. They will pay homage to their ancestors by visiting and cleaning the tombs. On this day, traditional foods are served and white noodles as a main dish.

It's cooked with vegetables such as carrots and greenpeas. Locals use the lower grade white noodle mainly because it's cheaper than the first grade.