A heart to keep fire of ‘Tenom Coffee' burning
Published on: Sunday, June 08, 2025
Published on: Sun, Jun 08, 2025
By: Kan Yaw Chong Text Size: Freshly-picked coffee cherries being sun dried in Padas Farm. TENOM Coffee is a household name in Sabah. It owes its reputation largely to the special aroma and smoky coffee flavour due to a guarded old tradition of wood-fire bean roasting practice. However, cultivation of coffee, mainly Robusta in this so-called 'Sabah's Coffee Capital' had reportedly declined from previous decades, counting no more than a few hundred hectares now.
Advertisement But there is a willing heart to do the hard part to rejuvenate coffee planting. Tenom-born and patriot, Tham Yau Siong, brother of well-known adventure tourism veteran Yau Kong, has spent some years rallying a group of enterprising local land owners to get into the coffee planting act to keep the Tenom Coffee reputation going. Trend of surging global coffee culture is clear Actually, nobody can miss the trend of a rising global coffee drinking culture.
Advertisement Look at the global size of the coffee industry. The global market size was USD245.2 billion in 2024, which is anticipated to reach USD381.52 by 2034, rising at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 4.32pc from 2025 to 2034. The escalating adoption of coffee drinking culture globally is leading this coffee market. The growth is fuelled by rising demand, driven by rising disposable incomes, change of lifestyles and a growing coffee culture worldwide, hopefully uninterrupted by conflicts and wars from geopolitical tensions. Given rising prices and a surging global coffee drinking culture and a willingness of Tenom coffee growers to take serious care of coffee plants, Tham argues coffee planting now makes economic sense. Nearer home to the north, coffee consumption in China, which vows a rejuvenation policy of 'Shared Future and Prosperity' for all, coffee consumption had reportedly surged 150pc over the last 10 years! The news is coffee imports had nearly tripled to 5.5 million bags (60kg) and expected to rise to rise to 5.6 million bag by 2025. Since China can produce only two million bags domestically because of limiting climatic factors, they must import the demand-exceeds-supply reality to satisfy this explosive growth in consumption. 'Prospective income & cost – the winner on the revenue side': Tenom patriots Tham sees not only opportunities opening for Tenom patriots to help keep the fire of Tenom coffee burning, but also cite numbers that pay for serious planters who accept doing hard things on the care side. Speaking from tried and tested field experience, Yau Siong said: 'If you take care of a coffee tree well, like diligent pruning, consistent fertilising, shading from excessive heat, one tree can produce 5kg dry beans per tree per year and at current price of RM24 per kg where we can plant 400 trees per acre at 10x10ft apart, means you get a revenue of RM48,000 per acre per year. If you plant just two acres, income is potentially RM96,000 per year, while the cost of production is about 50% of that so income is on the winning side, provided you are willing to do the hard part and take care of the trees seriously,' stressed Yau Siong, President of the 20-strong Tenom Coffee Entrepreneurs Association or Persatuan Pengusaha Kopi Tenom in Malay, formed in 2019. Plant essential nutrient-rich alluvial soil from ancient lake & high yield But a yield of 5kg per tree per year as asserted is extraordinarily productive. Yet it may not be surprising because geologically, it is believed Tenom was once flooded under a vast ancient lake, then over thousands and millions of years, the cutting action of water from the Padas River, maybe through a waterfall, broke a gap across the Crocker Range, drained the lake empty, carving out a deep gorge called the Tenom Gorge, leaving behind a huge area of nutrient-rich alluvial soil deposit that is rich in plant essential nutrients like potash, lime and phosphorous acid, making them highly fertile, typically well drained though lacking in nitrogen and organic matter, howbeit the nutrient content may differ with some areas rich in calcium, sodium, potassium, silicon and phosphorus. Since a coffee plant starts flowering in seven months, revenue generation is not a marathon wait either, Yau Siong noted. Optimistic that a serious 'just do it' effort can succeed, Yau Siong drove Daily Express to his 22-acre farm by the bank of a pristine Paal river, for an onsite showcase to prove Tenom can produce a lot more coffee beans locally and makes the money! 'Productive pruning prospers a caring coffee planter': Tham Here is a list of care a serious coffee planter would do to succeed. One, pruning. Diligent pruning coffee plants is essential for a number of reasons, including keeping plants healthy, improve yields, facilitate harvesting, control growth, ensure proper light and air circulation , control pests and diseases, Yau Siong cited. Firstly, prune to control height and shape. To prove what has already been done, he stood beside a coffee plant that is no taller than himself – about 3m, and said: 'This is the result of one important top pruning measure to keep my trees no taller than myself (6ft) for easy reach to harvest berries. 'Harvesting will become a nightmare if you let your tree grow wild – too tall and too big.' Cut the unproductive 'Secondly, cut unnecessary branches, such as sprouting young shoots that suck up a lot of nutrients but don't fruit. Prune to keep the larger stronger productive arms to ensure bigger and healthier berries.' Everything he said in the field trip is confirmed by an educational article on 'why pruning a coffee plant is essential'. All agree that dense, unpruned growth can block sunlight, photosynthesis and airflow, hindering the plant's ability to produce flowers and fruits, while removal of unnecessary branches ensures needed light and air to reach all parts of the tree, boosting all round health and productivity. Coffee trees age and need rejuvenation, somehow, pruning not only excites growth of new, more vigorous shoots which are more productive than ailing woody branches but also extends a tree's productive life for years, it is noted. Nip sickness & disease in the bud And, since pruning also removes dead, diseased and damaged branches, it helps the planter detect early signs of disease outbreaks, nip them in the bud to reduce production losses. 'Conventional planters don't feel the need to service the plant but now we want to keep our trees at certain height by pruning,' Yau Siong kept at it. The May 27-8 DE visit was a wholly instructive agro field trip on what it takes to improve yield and fruit quality, controlled pruning control to ensure proper light and nutrient distribution, and consistent fertilizing to improve both the quantity and quality of coffee beans produced that fits the bill of agrotourism. Climate change- beating an unexpected challenge From pruning, Yau Siong zeroed into climate change – a least expected problem in coffee planting but has become a real challenge to reckon with. But how? 'Look at the shade trees,' he said. 'Shading is necessary now because of climate change. 'In the past, planters dismissed the need for shading, they argued coffee trees could stand the sun but now we must accept that climate change is a fact. When it is hot, it gets very hot, when the sun is too hot, it withers leaves, injures the tree, disease comes, production affected.' To impress on this reality, he took me to an unshaded tree which had a lot of berries but they were small while the leaves had turned yellowish, withering and folding. 'So, I have to plant shade trees to filter at least 30pc to 40pc of the sunlight to create a conducive environment to help them. 'On the other hand, coffee is conducive integrated farming, we can plant fruit trees for shading but that's something to think about later,' he added. Robusta thrives in Tenom, not Arabica On coffee facts, Tenom is limited to Robusta coffee which thrives only in warmer temperatures and Tenom is warm at an average altitude of 577m (1,900ft), a tropical region where 22-30C (72-86F) is considered the optimal temperature range. Since Robusta does not tolerate temperature above 32C, it imposes a need to plant shade trees, that's the real cost of climate change for stubborn climate change deniers to think about. Robusta and Arabica are the two main types of coffee beans Though Arabica coffee is more preferred due to its smoother, sweeter and more nuanced flavour compared to Robusta, Arabica needs an optimal 18-21C (64-70F) for quality and yield, that is, it needs much cooler altitudes between 1,200-1,860m (4,300-6,000ft) which rules Tenom out for planting. But the point of this Special Report is a determined move is underway to fortify Tenom as a strong coffee bean production region. 'We already started on the production side and think downstream to add value by the possibility of eventually putting tourism into the picture. The idea is to make coffee production worth more for the coffee farmer. Tourists may do the trick Yau Siong cited two practical concepts that are 'very common' in Taiwan. One, Deep tourism. Two, Agro-tourism. Deep tourism refers to a mindset or approach to travel that emphasises meaningful, immersive (completely involved) and transformative experiences beyond its surface level, deep engagement with a destination, its culture and history, fostering a more profound understanding and appreciation. Agro tourism involves experiencing agricultural areas and farms. It encompasses elements like farm stays, U-pick operations, farm tours, workshops, farm-to-table dinner and festivals. These elements allow visitors to engage with farming practices, learn about local food production, immerse themselves in rural life, while providing farmers with additional income streams. A five-fold income boosting Taiwanese showcase Yau Siong believes value adding packages can help bring back coffee bean production in Tenom because of a potentially more lucrative industry. He cited a lime farm in Taiwan he knew. Before they started agro-tourism, the income was one million Taiwanese dollar from just lime production alone. After creating an agro tourism package, income rose to 4-5 million, with elements like educational courses for visitors, U-pick operation, or pruning when not fruiting, fertilization, spraying, yet they are not afraid of exposing trade secrets, in fact better, because when visitors see minimal use of chemicals, they help spread the good word-wow, environmentally friendly programme with minimal use of chemicals, the fruits must be good for consumption, sales improve. In this way, whether the lime farm is fruiting or not, it still has visitors and cash flows from agro-tourism,' Yau Sing argued. A clear agro-tourism vision to prosper The Taiwanese example inspires a vision for Tenom coffee. 'My point is we don't just talk about a product, but besides being an agro product, it is a tourism element, visitors come, they drink a cup of coffee produced at site, then see the process, from planting to to drinking, we bring them to the farm, see the planting, and come May or June, join the pruning, experience how to prune. Come October, pick coffee berries, see how we dry coffee berries, the dehusking process, roasting coffee, till drinking the coffee,' Yau Siong described his dream to Daily Express . So, keeping Tenom's reputation as 'Sabah's Coffee Capital' in the fuller sense of the word is on the way. The potential is not far-fetched on account of the rising global coffee culture, given a rising coffee drinking culture, such as an explosive growth in demand in China, which we have already highlighted.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Rakyat Post
4 hours ago
- Rakyat Post
Malaysia's E-commerce Platforms Require Bahasa Melayu Product Listings Under New Rules
Subscribe to our FREE E-commerce platforms in Malaysia are now requiring sellers to use Bahasa Melayu in their product listings following new government regulations that took effect this month. Shopee, Lazada and TikTok Shop have notified sellers that they must comply with the Consumer Protection (Electronic Trade Transaction) Regulations 2024 Using Bahasa Melayu for all product titles and descriptions (brand names excluded) Displaying complete seller information, including name, contact details and business address Providing safety certifications for applicable products Implementation and Support Measures Meanwhile, the original compliance deadline of 24 June has been postponed pending review, with a new timeline to be announced once confirmed. To help sellers adapt, ecommerce platforms provide automatic translation feature that converts product descriptions to Bahasa Melayu. Penalties for non-compliance: Individuals: Up to RM50,000 fine and three years' jail for the first offence Companies: Up to RM100,000 fine for first offence Repeat offenders face doubled penalties While some sellers have raised concerns about implementation challenges, others have lauded the move as dignifying the national language and promoting Malaysian identity in the digital marketplace. Share your thoughts with us via TRP's . Get more stories like this to your inbox by signing up for our newsletter.
New Straits Times
18 hours ago
- New Straits Times
MONEY THOUGHTS: A practical blueprint for modest wealth
This is our current reality: United States President Donald Trump's asinine trade tariff tantrum will make life tougher for both Americans and the rest of the world, because the economic friction introduced by his tariffs will lower Earth's potential aggregate economic growth. The reduction will make life less palatable for most of Earth's 8.2 billion people. Thankfully, there are ways for regular people to restructure their finances to benefit from the economic and capital market volatility stemming from bad policies gushing out from the once-respected White House like a high-pressure stream of raw sewage. In April, Forbes magazine released its 39th annual World's Billionaires list. It unearthed a record number of 3,028 billionaires with an aggregate net worth of US$16.1 trillion. The mean net worth of those 3,000-plus super-wealthy men and women this year: US$5.3 billion. The world's first billionaire was oilman John Davison Rockefeller — later referred to as John D. Rockefeller Sr when his son John D. Rockefeller Jr was born. JDR Sr became a billionaire in 1916 at the age of 77. To their credit, he and his progeny nurtured a culture of philanthropy that benefitted millions over many decades. JDR Sr died in 1937 at the age of 97 years and 10 months. Five years before his demise, in writer John Thomas Flynn's book God's Gold: The Story of Rockefeller and His Times, JDR Sr is quoted saying: "I believe the power to make money is a gift from God — just as the instincts for art, music, literature, the doctor's talent, the nurse's, yours — to be developed and used to the best of our ability for the good of mankind. "Having been endowed with the gift I possess, I believe it is my duty to make money and still more money; and to use the money I make for the good of my fellow man according to the dictates of my conscience." I find that almost century-old statement of mission and intent (from 1932) inspiring. LESSONS AND PRINCIPLES I recognise it is unlikely any of Earth's current crop of 3,028 billionaires will read this Money Thoughts column, including the 19 of them who are Malaysians with average net worths of about US$3 billion or RM12.7 billion. I probably don't have anything of value to share with those super-elite individuals who account for 0.000037 per cent of all living humans. However — and this I know from decades of client interactions — when it comes to attaining modest levels of wealth, say in the much lower RM100,000 to RM10 million range, I do have viable lessons and principles to share with many people. Toward that end, there is a multi-part blueprint which I'm happy to share with ambitious readers. Note: Meaningful levels of domestic, regional, and global philanthropy can be achieved by the many millions of people worldwide who are capable of building wealth levels in the range of RM100,000 to RM10 million. So, to help such individuals, I've been laying the foundation of this blueprint over several weeks. Here it is: 1. Recognise the value of two distinct processes; 2. Embrace high market volatility as a long-term aid to wealth-building; 3. Harness a logical long-term investment strategy; and 4. Use a readily available banking facility to put your plan on autopilot. Allow me to elaborate: 1. The Two Processes The six-step financial planning process and a logical three-part wealth-building process can be of use to almost all adults of sound mind. Read that recent Money Thoughts column for a rundown of both processes. Do take note of the second process, which comprises one principle, one strategy and one system. Each of which will be sequentially covered below to provide you — hopefully — with a robust framework to build future wealth for your family, most likely within the target range of RM100,000 to RM10 million. 2. Volatility's hidden value In both business and investing, the most straightforward way to make money is to buy low, and sell high. It is a powerful principle. When we understand this unchanging economic truth, we can begin looking upon asset price volatility as a beneficial wealth-building mechanism. Elaboration: 3. Understand dollar-cost averaging Unfortunately, a mere cerebral acceptance of the validity of buying low and selling high is useless unless we can also implement a disciplined strategy to do so consistently. The dollar-cost averaging (DCA) fits the bill. Perfectly. 4. Rely on standing instructions Finally, even after we reach the point of understanding that it is economically beneficial to implement a personal DCA strategy when aiming to build lifelong wealth, we still need a pragmatic system to automatically and emotionlessly implement that strategy. The system I recommend hinges on bank Standing Instructions that regularly shunt cash out of our bank account into, ideally, a diversified savings and investment portfolio for decades on end. Digesting all the material in today's column requires time and attention. I know most readers won't embark on the full journey, but the minority that does will prosper; and in all likelihood, bigtime. © 2025 Rajen Devadason
New Straits Times
19 hours ago
- New Straits Times
It's regulated: Ministry dismisses call to ban gold-plated products amid TikTok boom
KUALA LUMPUR: There is no need to ban the sale of gold-plated products as the sale of such items is regulated to protect consumers. Domestic Trade and Cost of Living Ministry enforcement director-general Datuk Azman Adam said gold-plated products have been in the market for years, and their increasing popularity did not warrant a ban. Previously, the Malaysia Gold Association (MGA) called for the sale of "gold-wrapped" products to be banned amid their growing popularity on social media platforms like TikTok. Its president, Datuk Louis Ng, said that these items posed a risk to consumers, pawnbrokers, and the gold recycling industry as they could be mistaken for authentic gold. He said a thick layer of gold wrapping could make such items indistinguishable from genuine gold, especially to the untrained eye. Azman said the Trade Descriptions (Articles Made of Precious Metals) Regulations under the Trade Descriptions Act governed the sale of precious metals like gold, silver and platinum. "The aim (of the regulations) is to protect consumers from fraud and ensure transparency in the precious metals market," he told the New Straits Times. Azman said the regulations specified that jewellery coated with gold, silver or platinum must be described with the word "plated" when sold to customers. A company or individual in violation of the law faces a fine of up to RM25,000 or RM10,000, respectively. An individual can also be jailed for up to one year, or both, upon conviction. Action can be taken against traders who fail to comply with this requirement. However, to date, Azman said the ministry had not received any official complaints regarding the sale of gold-plated silver products or gold-like items. Precious metal sales highly regulated Azman said online traders were also subjected to the law, including the requirement to disclose product information under Schedule 3 of the Consumer Protection (Electronic Trade Transactions) Regulations. He added that the sale of precious metals was highly regulated against fraud. "Any person who uses false trade descriptions regarding the purity standards of precious metals may also be prosecuted under Regulation 8, Trade Descriptions (Articles Made of Precious Metals) Regulations. "They can also be charged under Section 5 read with Section 6(f) of the Trade Descriptions Act," he said. Under the Act, if the offender is a corporate body, it may be fined up to RM250,000 upon conviction. And for a second or subsequent offence, the fine may be increased to a maximum of RM500,000. If the offender is not a corporate body, he may be fined up to RM100,000 or face imprisonment for up to three years, or both. He added that businesses selling or supplying precious metals must provide a receipt detailing the item's specifications, as mandated under Regulation 9 at the time of supply. Azman also warned that traders using uncertified gold weighing scales or engaging in fraudulent weight measurements could be prosecuted under the Weights and Measures Act. Under Section 14(6) of the Act, any person who uses or possesses for trade purposes any weight, measure, or weighing or measuring instrument that has not been verified, stamped, certified or approved as required under this section commits an offence. Upon conviction, they may be fined up to RM40,000 or imprisoned for a term not exceeding three years, or both. The weight, measure or weighing or measuring instrument may be forfeited. The compoundable amount for this offence shall not exceed the maximum fine, which is RM40,000. "Among others, complaints related to misleading sales practices may also be investigated under Sections 9 and 10 of the Consumer Protection Act," he said. Under the Act, if the offender is a corporate body, it may be fined up to RM250,000, and for a second or subsequent offence, the fine may be increased to a maximum of RM500,000. If the offender is not a corporate body, he may be fined up to RM100,000 or face imprisonment for up to three years, or both. Meanwhile, Azman said consumers who felt cheated in a sales transaction could file a claim with the Tribunal for Consumer Claims Malaysia. He encouraged consumers to report any concerns by submitting complaints with full and accurate details through WhatsApp: 019-848 8000, 1-800-886-800 and Ez ADU KPDN Mobile App.
