The Tofu Tragedy

How Plastic Waste is Burned in Indonesian Tofu Factories

by Benedict Wermter

What happens in Indonesia's tofu factories is shocking and difficult to comprehend: plastic waste is used as fuel to cook and fry tofu—on an industrial scale. Toxic gases pollute the air. Worse still, Millions of people may have been exposed to heavily contaminated food for years, along with workers who produce tofu under undignified and unhealthy conditions.

This is a story of tragic production practices, a lack of transparency in supply chains, and a circular economy that remains a distant dream.

 

Their eyes are cloudy, wrinkles run deep in their skin. Their bodies are dry and sinewy, their faces pale. Many wear rags with remnants of mass production clinging to them—soybeans, dried cooking water, dough. Despite the harsh conditions in these industrial kitchens, people smile. They joke about who will marry the reporter—the giant from the West—and take photos with battered smartphones.

 

 

The people working in tofu factories near the major city of Surabaya, Indonesia, are often only in their mid-30s or early 40s. One reason they appear unwell is a scandal in itself. These workers are exposed to massive amounts of harmful substances. And that’s not all: tofu production here is gradually poisoning all of East Java and neighboring regions, potentially affecting Millions.

 

Plastic Waste from Households, Textile Scraps, Rubber, and Tires as Fuel for Cookshops

For years, rumors have circulated among Bali’s digital nomads, environmentalists, and even Indonesian authorities. Allegedly, plastic waste from households, textile remnants, rubber, and tires has been burned in these tofu factories in place of coal or wood pellets to heat steam and cooking boilers. Imported plastic waste is also said to be used as fuel. In 2019, a local film crew gained rare access and reported on the issue, though without fully detailing the implications.

After that, the factories went quiet. Since then, hundreds of thousands of tons of waste may have been incinerated in roughly a dozen factories in Surabaya’s industrial belt—without regulation—and just as many tons of tofu may have been contaminated. Tofu is a staple in nearly every Indonesian dish.

 

 

 

These factories are often housed in old warehouses that can be entered freely. During an on-site visit to one facility, men with defined biceps are seen working the first stage of production. They grind soybeans into a paste and pour it into steam boilers, heated by pipes carrying hot air. The water bubbles as the paste is repeatedly drawn out with cloths, shaken, and returned. The hot air pipes from the boilers converge in a large oven located in a separate room.

 

"We Get This from the Plastic Industry”

A distiller grins as he explains: "I put the plastic waste into the furnace here to generate heat for the steam boilers.” Behind him is a two-meter-high pile of black-and-white offcuts—presumably PVC from cable production—as well as plastic film, shredded rubber mats, and assorted plastic parts. "We get this from the plastics industry,” says the man, whose name is unknown and who likely has no idea what this practice means for his own health—or that of Millions of others.

He explains that this fuel works as well as wood pellets but costs half as much. A ton of industrial waste costs the equivalent of just €30, compared to about €70 for wood. So the oven door is opened, and the toxic, unsorted substitute fuel is swept into the combustion chamber. Moments later, a black cloud of steam rises from the exhaust pipe, turning the neighborhood into a chemically stinking fog. And still, the boilers bubble on.

 

Other Industries in the Shadow Economy Also Burn Plastic Waste

There are around 70 of these factories clustered near Surabaya. According to media reports, up to 30 use wood pellets—and therefore may also be burning plastic waste. In mid-March 2025, we visited three factories and found the six-year-old TV report to be accurate.

Tofu factories are likely not an isolated case. Other industries operating in the informal economy—without employment contracts and often surrounded by indifferent or complicit officials—are also suspected of using plastic waste. According to our research, cookshops in the greater Jakarta area may also be affected, and some laundries that generate steam reportedly burn leftover plastic cuttings to heat water.

These are snapshots of a circular economy gone wrong. The local plastics industry apparently lacks reliable buyers for recycling or processing plastic waste into proper alternative fuels. The Indonesian cement industry is only just starting to explore this option. Supply chains and prices remain unstable. And so, once again, the waste finds the cheapest outlet—this time, in toxic tofu. Bon appétit.

 

Plastic Waste Beneath the Wok Pan

Just behind the distiller and his pile of industrial waste, women are busy working in the tofu factories. They stand in front of large woks mounted over chimneys, rolling cooked tofu in breadcrumbs and deep-frying it. More fuel is added constantly—by hand or with a stick—feeding shredded plastic into the chimney. Smoke rises again, blowing directly over the woks and collecting in the room. Breathing is difficult; eyes burn.

Unlike the industrial waste, this plastic often comes from households. Informal waste collectors gather packaging waste, which is later sorted by aggregators. So-called "plastic farmers” take this multilayered sorting waste, cut it up in their gardens and fields, and sell the shredded material to tofu factories—creating a small profit from what’s left.

 

 

 

In Indonesia, overconsumption meets a lack of infrastructure and regulation. The only apparent winners are the middlemen—those who transport waste from the plastics industry or informal sector to the tofu factories, and the wholesalers who purchase potentially toxic tofu and distribute it via Surabaya to Bali and other parts of eastern Indonesia. All at the expense of factory workers, surrounding communities who breathe in the fumes, and Millions who unknowingly consume the contaminated food.

The head of the department responsible for waste management at the Ministry of the Environment commented on social media that the issue was "not current.” When questioned, he sent photos showing that his environmental officers had inspected the tofu factories after our visit. Whether plastic waste will truly stop being used remains to be seen.

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published: , 5|2025
Keywords: Pollution Control, Sustainability, Climate, Plastics, Awareness - Training, Indonesia