Visiting a Gorontalo Food Processor That Turns Tuna Trimmings into “Abon” — Proposing Fermentation to Extend Shelf Life and Add Value
On August 10, 2026, Space Seed Holdings Inc. (Headquarters: Minato-ku, Tokyo; Representative Director and CEO: Kengo Suzuki; “SSHD”) visited BMS (Bilal Mekar Snack), a food processor in Gorontalo Province, Indonesia, to see how tuna processing residues are turned into “abon,” a flaked food. SSHD was accompanied by Ananda Setiyo Ivannanto, President Director of PT Awina Sinergi International, and Dr. Arfiani Rizki Paramata of Universitas Negeri Gorontalo. SSHD shared ideas for fermenting Gorontalo’s agricultural and marine products to extend the shelf life of food ingredients and finished products while raising their value.
Visit overview
- Date: Monday, August 10, 2026
- Host: BMS (Bilal Mekar Snack), Jl. Poowo, Kel. Bulotadaa Barat, Kec. Sipatana, Gorontalo City, Gorontalo Province, Indonesia
- Participants: Kengo Suzuki (Representative Director and CEO, SSHD); Ananda Setiyo Ivannanto (President Director, PT Awina Sinergi International); Dr. Arfiani Rizki Paramata, S.Pi., M.Si. (Lecturer, Universitas Negeri Gorontalo; halal auditor, LPPOM MUI Gorontalo Province)
- Purpose: to understand how fishery processing residues are used, and to explore improving preservation and adding value through fermentation
The visit was the first field activity under the cooperation agreement on research, human-resource development and industrialization in agribusiness and sustainable fisheries management, signed the same day by SSHD, Awina and the Faculty of Marine and Fisheries Technology at Universitas Negeri Gorontalo.
Why turning discarded parts into shelf-stable products matters
BMS is a local food processor that promotes “Gorontalo’s local food.” It heats, shreds, seasons and dries residues from tuna processing to make the flaked “Abon Ikan Tuna” (tuna abon). Abon is a traditional Indonesian preserved food eaten with rice or bread; because it can be distributed at ambient temperature, it reaches areas without adequate refrigeration. BMS also makes sambal sagela, a spicy condiment of smoked fish that is a Gorontalo specialty, and sells beyond the region through its own shop, e-commerce platforms such as Shopee, Tokopedia and Bukalapak, and delivery services such as Grab and Maxim.
The visit also confirmed challenges common to small producers: the quality of residue raw materials varies with season and catch; the more a product aims to be additive-free, the shorter its shelf life must be set; and variations in flavor from the raw material have to be absorbed by seasoning.
Using fermentation for both preservation and value creation
At the site, SSHD shared ideas for using fermentation with Gorontalo’s agricultural and marine products:
- Designing for preservation: letting beneficial microbes dominate and controlling pH and water activity to extend the shelf life of ingredients and finished products without relying on preservatives.
- Adding flavor and function: increasing free amino acids and peptides through protein breakdown during fermentation, so residues are positioned not as “cheap raw material” but as functional ingredients in terms of umami and nutrition.
- From finished products to ingredients: supplying not only finished products such as abon but also intermediate ingredients—seasoning bases and powders—that other companies can build into their products, widening both unit prices and sales channels.
- Leaving nothing behind: designing the use of by-products from the processing itself, including conversion into feed and fertilizer ingredients, as part of one system.
These are ideas at the sharing stage. Verification will proceed with Universitas Negeri Gorontalo’s research facilities and the participation of faculty and students, starting with characterizing the raw materials and small-scale prototyping and evaluation.
Built on halal compliance and quality assurance
Dr. Arfiani Rizki Paramata is a fisheries researcher and also a halal auditor for the Gorontalo Province branch of LPPOM MUI (the food, drug and cosmetics assessment institute of the Indonesian Ulema Council), holding a BNSP-certified halal auditor qualification. In Indonesia, halal certification of food is institutionalized under the Halal Product Assurance Agency (BPJPH), and the more processing a product undergoes, the more important the design of raw-material and process control becomes. By building halal compliance and quality assurance in from the earliest stage of introducing fermentation, SSHD aims for a form in which local small and medium-sized producers can reach domestic and export markets without strain.
Comment
“Not throwing residues away is an economic question before it is an environmental one. How many times over we can multiply the value taken from the same fish is decided by technology and design. Fermentation is one of the few ways to extend shelf life while also raising the value of the ingredient itself. We want to add our technology and the university’s knowledge to the ingenuity of the people working on the factory floor.”
—Kengo Suzuki, Representative Director and CEO, Space Seed Holdings Inc.
About PT Awina Sinergi International
PT Awina Sinergi International (PT AWINA) is the Indonesian company of the AAI group. Based in Indonesia, it develops businesses in renewable energy, environmental solutions, waste management and the circular economy in partnership with Japanese companies, and promotes business links between Japan and Indonesia. Together with Hokuriku Electrical Construction Co., Ltd. (Hokuriku Electric Power Group) and AAI Co., Ltd., it participates in PT Awina Rikudenko Solar Engineering Indonesia (ARISE), established in April 2023 as Hokuriku Electrical Construction’s first overseas subsidiary.
https://awina.co.id/
About Space Seed Holdings Inc.
Space Seed Holdings Inc. is a space-focused deep-tech venture builder whose mission is “Turning science fiction into nonfiction.” Through investment, research and venture creation—centered on operating the “Fermentation and Longevity Fund” program, which supports the social implementation of fermentation and longevity technologies—the company creates businesses that address societal challenges. Together with diverse stakeholders, it aims to assemble by 2040 the technologies humankind needs to live in space.
https://ss-hd.co.jp/