Imah Maggot Bantaran is a youth-led initiative aimed at reducing food waste that pollutes the environment and fostering healthier environments in Bandung, Indonesia. Team Amreta, comprised of M Aufa Rahdi S., Seranti Ninan, and Hasna Khadijah, introduced an innovative solution named during the Champion Ideathon 2023 in Bandung.
“In the past, all rubbish was thrown into temporary waste storage (TPS). Now, there is confusion about where the wet food waste will go. Nobody is collecting it, and when wet waste gets thrown into the environment, it smells bad, and it’s dirty.”
The sentence above came from one of the residents at RT 4 Dago Pojok, Bandung City.
After a fire at the Sarimukti landfill in August 2023, the landfill was closed for weeks. This incident was the result of piles of organic waste that had been buried for years, and produced flammable methane gas. The impact of the spark at the landfill was paid for by all residents in Bandung city. Now, organic waste is no longer accepted for disposal in landfills, and residents are directed to carry out independent management in their respective areas. Meanwhile, the city produces 1,766 tons of waste per day and 44% of it is food waste. With this large generation of waste, thousands of residents are confused: “Where should the food waste go?”
Not far from the city center, in Dago Pojok, we noticed the same problem arise. Located on the banks of the Cikapundung River, wet food waste was piled up and spread on the ground, in the hope that it would decompose over time. Unfortunately, with the high level of waste produced, much of it ends up polluting the environment and can bring disease to local residents.
So, what is the solution for handling food waste in the household?
We started our journey with such a question. Then, we met Cika-Cika Community, who work on environmental issues. This community lives on the side of the Cikapundung River, behind the hustle and bustle of where Dago Pojok residents live. Since 2012, this community has voiced the same concern: waste piling up in the river and along its banks. Routinely, members of Cika-Cika Community hold events to clean up waste in the river while preserving the plains along the Cikapundung River.
Image 1: Cika-Cika Community along side the Cikapundung river
When we brought up the issue of waste management, Cika-Cika Community welcomed our enthusiasm and introduced us to their member, Kang Adi. He has practical experience in managing food waste with maggots, also called the larvae of Black Soldier Fly (BSF) flies, which are capable of consuming food waste up to three times their body weight. One kilogram of adult maggot larvae can process up to 3 kilograms of food waste per day. This solution can be a way out of the problem of food waste which is increasingly accumulating in households. Apart from that, all phases of the BSF can be utilised: the larvae decompose waste, the pupa shells and fly carcasses can be used as fertiliser, and the food waste they process becomes cassava or plant compost.
Imah Maggot Bantaran was initiated as an effort by our team and Cika-Cika Community to resolve food waste in the Dago Pojok area. Imah Maggot Bantaran, which means maggot house on the river bank, seeks to utilise maggots as a community-based solution for breaking down waste.
Image 2: Imah Maggot Bantaran and Cika-Cika Community
Our goal for Imah Maggot Bantaran brought us to residents of Dago Pojok. We went to one house after another to look at the problem more closely. We listened, empathised, and positioned ourselves as Dago Pojok residents formulated solutions that can bring benefits to the surrounding area. After that, we started with 5 litre buckets and a simple invitation for the residents to sort the waste at home. We shared information about the types of food waste that BSF can process so that it is put into small buckets. We went door to door with residents to share buckets, starting from 50 houses with 50 housewives.
Image 3: The 5 litre buckets provided to residents go Dago Park
Image 4 and 5: Young people from Imah Maggot Bantaran visiting door-to-door inviting residents to sort waste at home
Apparently, housewives are the main actors we always visit in every socialisation regarding waste. They are the most enthusiastic, caring people, even diligent in informing each other about special buckets for food waste. They are at the forefront of dealing with the problem of dirt and the accumulation of rubbish in the environment every day.
Apart from housewives, it turns out we also found new enthusiasm in innocent souls, aka children! Initially, they were curious about our activities below on the riverbank and were curious about the small creatures that break down rubbish. It is not uncommon for them to come to the maggot house to see and learn about BSF larvae. The presence of children who helped us was a surprise that we never expected. They came enthusiastically to help, not even disgusted by the trash. They became pioneers in sorting waste in their own homes, bringing knowledge on the riverbanks back to their families.
So, what do we actually do? Our principle is simple – we make it easy for residents to sort waste and provide disposal points around housing. That way, residents can independently dispose of the waste that has been sorted every day, without waiting for it to be picked up at home so that the leftover food waste does not smell or rot. Then, every two days, the waste is transported by Cika-Cika Community to be processed with BSF maggots at Imah Maggot Bantaran.
Through all these efforts, since January 2024, we have now succeeded in transporting almost 1 ton of waste, involving more than 50 households, and ensuring that food waste in the area is managed.
Of course, a strong community is the main key to the success behind this initiative. The culture of mutual cooperation, helping each other, uniting to achieve common goals is the driving force for every step we take. Providing infrastructure alone will not be a sustainable answer and have a big impact on citizens’ daily lives, but a technical solution is only one part of the puzzle. We realise that systematic change also includes changes in behaviour, so it requires realisation through empowerment and collective action.
We also learned that the waste problem in Indonesia is not impossible to solve. Indonesian people are not as stubborn as people say. We are capable of change. We just need to dig a little deeper for change to happen.
We hope that Imah Maggot Bantaran will be one of many initiatives that arise to achieve a common goal, realising a community-based food waste management system that is sustainable and beneficial for the community. Solving environmental problems will not be possible alone – joint efforts are needed so that the waste problem can be resolved. For this reason, we need to deal with waste one by one, sort it little by little, until nothing is just dumped, until we are able to realise #ZeroTrashtoTPA.
Image 6 and 7: The maggot house along the river bank
