Cracker Production Hub in Karangasem Selatan Village Batang Survives for Three Decades

Batang Kartininews.com – South Karangasem Village in Batang Subdistrict, Batang Regency, continues to serve as a cracker production hub that has endured for three decades. The cracker industry players are spread across Dukuh Kebundelan and surrounding areas in South Karangasem Village, which possesses strong market power.

What enables them to survive is their strong capital, allowing them to endure the current economic conditions.

Mutrofin, the Village Head of South Karangasem, said that almost every alley is filled with home-based cracker businesses. According to him, crackers are the flagship product produced daily in his village. The best-selling variety is kerupuk usek. This type differs from other crackers because it is fried using sand, making it oil-free and cholesterol-free. The industry players also consider kerupuk usek fried in sand to be a natural and healthy product, giving it a distinctive taste.

Mutrofin also noted that the cracker business is highly competitive, not only in terms of product pricing but also in competing with similar businesses from outside the region. As a result, competition is very tight. This is because the market continues to accept the product, and it has become a daily food necessity.

Mutrofin urged cracker producers to keep innovating so they can advance and stay ahead in the market. This is intended to make the products more appealing to the public and to continuously improve product quality.

Mutrofin also acknowledged that the cracker business has become an icon in his area. He is grateful that the village economy is supported by these cracker enterprises.

Business owner Titiek Tarkumi (55) said her business was inherited from her in-laws. She acknowledged that this cracker business is a family legacy that she is simply continuing, making it a generational enterprise. Titiek also mentioned that every business has its ups and downs—good times and bad—but she faces it all willingly. She has managed the business from her in-laws for ten years and plans to continue it and pass it on to her children in the future.

Titiek also shared that she has been involved for more than 30 years, ever since she became a daughter-in-law. She recalled times when market demand for crackers increased dramatically, forcing her to hire around 17 employees. Her main flagship product is kerupuk kotak (box crackers).

These box crackers come in several colors and are very affordable. The factory price is Rp16,000 per kilogram, rising to Rp17,000 when sold outside the region due to transportation costs. The price also depends on the cost of raw materials, primarily starch.

Titiek’s market reach has spread to various areas, including Weleri, Kaliwungu, Kendal, Cepiring, Pemalang, and even Mranggen in Demak. Distribution is done both directly and through orders. Customers are also allowed to buy directly at the factory. Titiek is grateful to have survived until now and hopes the business will continue running and be passed on to the next generation.