The Farm
Kundur Island Bee Farm is located in Kundur Island, in the Riau Archipelago, Indonesia, a small tropical island which is well-known as fruit producing centre. It is especially famous for its durians. We have two farms in Kundur: a durian orchard on the rocky hill of Bukit Sialang (Giant Bee Hill) and a coconut orchard on the alluvial plain near the coast of Tanjung Sesup.
We practice strict traditional farming techniques in our farms. We consider man-made chemicals which have revolutionized agriculture in the past century as harmful to the environment, flora, fauna and us. We completely ban the use of herbicide, pesticide, chemical fertilizer, hormone, antibiotics, etc. within our farms.
The Farm’s raison d’être is to produce the healthiest products possible. Yields are not our priority. Riches are not our motivation. Health is.
The Founder & CEO
Kundur Island Bee Farm was founded by Arli Salim, a man with wide interests and matching can-do spirit. After graduating with an undergraduate honours degree in Science from Macquarie University, Sydney, Australia, he worked as a problem-solver for 23 years in all areas of computer management (Systems, Database, Storage and Network) on all types of computer hardware (Mainframe, Mid-range and Microcomputer) during the span of his career in the industry.
He loves growing edible fruit plants. Among his proudest achievements was cultivating habaneros in a Singapore Community Garden near his home, planted from the seeds he brought back from a meal in a Mexican restaurant in California. It ended prematurely after visitors to the garden were surprised to see what was probably the first known habanero plant in the country and helped themselves not just to the fruits but the plants as well.
He is fascinated by honey bees and has a tiny collection of honey from different places. He is always looking for good (and affordable) honey whenever he travels. He founded the Farm, partly because he was alarmed to see the quality of most honey for sale. A “non-living” honey, devoid of enzymes, pollens, and microbiome is not what our ancestors had enjoyed. He hopes the Farm can help bring quality and health back to our dining tables and inspires many other entrepreneurs to do likewise.
No substitute for health!