BANANA REPUBLIC
Continuing our Innovation Series, Life talks with Wutthichai Chanama, the entrepreneur who founded Banana Society, which produces solar-dried bananas in various flavours
The road leading to Ban Neon Kum in Bang Krathum district in Phitsanulok is quiet. Along the road are farmlands consisting mostly of banana plantations. For more than a century, locals in Bang Krathum have grown the fruit for producing sundried bananas — known as kluay tak in Thai. Kluay tak is a Geographical Indication (GI) product of Bang Krathum. About 4,000 tonnes of kluay tak are produced yearly.
This hub is also home to Banana Society, a pioneer of solar-dried bananas.
Founded in 2015, the company is regarded as a role model for other kluay tak business owners to follow suit due to its success in lifting up the image of the local snack to a premium product for export.
“I wanted to change the cheap image of kluay tak and make it more appealing to wider groups of customers,” said
Wutthichai Chanama, 44, the owner of Banana Society. He recalled his simple goal when he took charge of his family business more than 25 years ago. The family has produced sun-dried bananas for more than 50 years.
The first thing he wanted to do was to improve hygiene. In the past, kluay tak were dried on bamboo trays in the sunlight and exposed to dust, dirt and bugs. In addition, the bananas were easily spoiled during rainy season.
At first, he tried changing packaging and rebranding the product from Kluay Tak Pa Tuean (his mother’s name) to Kluay Tak Buppha (his wife’s name), but sales volume remained unchanged. A chance came when the province wanted to promote sun-dried bananas as a One Tambon One Product (Otop) of Phitsanulok. A series of training courses were organised for small and medium enterprises (SMEs).
Wutthichai enjoyed gaining knowledge that benefited his business. But he dropped out of a course on food safety and production standards.
“I didn’t see the point to join the class because I couldn’t yet change the sun drying process that was exposed to dust and bugs, let alone the topic of food safety,” he recalled telling Assoc Prof Voranuch Srijesdaruk of Khon Kaen University, who was heading the training project about two decades ago.
Instead of letting Wutthichai leave, Voranuch prioritised hygiene to help improve the product’s quality.
“Ajarn Voranuch is the key person who opened a door of opportunity for me. Imagine someone like me who has only a secondary school degree and lives in a rural area. I would never have had a chance to meet any academics and known about any innovation if Ajarn Voranuch hadn’t helped,” he said.
Voranuch put him in contact with Assistant Prof Bhundit Innawong of the Department of Food Technology of Silpakorn University, at the time chairperson of the Innovation House project funded by the Thailand Science Research and Innovation, previously known as Thailand Research Fund.
“We fought over the phone during my first call so I decided to drive my old pickup truck to meet him in person in his office in Nakhon Pathom. When we met, it was another story. Our ideas clicked,” he said.
Dr Bhundit brought him to Suan Phueng Nature Education Park in Kanchanaburi to see a solar dryer dome, better known as parabola dome. The dome was invented by Dr Serm Janjai of Silpakorn University in 1996 with the support of the Department of Alternative Energy Development and Efficiency. At that time the dome was small, about 5.5m in length and 3m in width.
“I knew right away that parabola dome was my answer. I wanted to have one to dry bananas at home,” he said.
When Wutthichai asked Dr Serm to build a large dome for drying a tonne of ripe bananas, it was another story.
It took about five months to build the first industrial-size parabola dome in the backyard of Wutthichai’s plant, known as Kluay Tak Buppha Community Enterprise. The solar dryer dome was four times bigger than the original version. It was 20.8m long and 8m wide. It required about 1.2 million baht of investment. (Today the price is about 200,000 baht).
When neighbours knew about the cost, it made him look absurd. “They thought I was stupidly crazy.”
In contrast to what other people said, he was hopeful and optimistic. But the good feeling faded away very soon. After a couple days inside the dome, he found that the first load of bananas didn’t turn into perfect brownish sun-dried bananas. They were steamed instead.
“I was shocked,” he said. Bananas contain liquid so the heat made moisture come out. “When we were in the greenhouse, we sweated a lot. My first batch of bananas became kluay neung (steamed banana) instead of kluay tak,” he said.
During the first two years, he trashed loads of ripe bananas. Money was burnt in the experiments. But he refused to give up. “I didn’t want my last investment to go in vain,” he insisted.
While inside his office, he noticed that he did not sweat when an electric fan was on. He immediately bought industrial fans to place inside the dome. Within the first day, most but not all of the bananas started to dry.
In a puzzle-like fashion, he installed wires above each row of banana trays, dangling magnetic cassette tape from the wires. When he turned on the fan, he walked around to check if any strips were stationary. If so, he added another fan at that point. The wind helped moisture evaporate. All the bananas dried evenly and turned shiny brown. After the two-year trial and error, he got his first perfect kluay tak.
“I was extremely happy,” he said. The parabola dome also shortened the drying period from seven days to four days.
Dr Bhundit suggested Wutthichai should rebrand, reposition and repackage the product, and “Banana Society” was chosen to represent the Bang Krathum community, the largest producer of kluay tak. The target shifted to high-end.
Wutthichai was also advised to work with a research team from the Innovation and Technology Assistance Program of the National Science and Technology Development Agency (NSTDA). The team brought in experts to improve his manufacturing process. His plant was later certified with international standards like the
International Organisation for Standardisation (ISO), Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) and Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP), an internationally recognised system based on the production of safe food.
Anuchit Panyawatchara and Nopneera Rugsasook of Yindee Design, who are now well-known creative designers, created the fan-like logo and new packaging. The bananas are now packaged in a neat paper box that looks unique, modern and premium.
Wutthichai also took a bold step. He dared to set the price at 100 baht for 450g, quadrupling the price of typical sun-dried bananas, which were typically offered at 100 baht for three or four packs, or about 2kg. The product sold like hot cakes.
“Our customers were willing to pay for premium quality. We also printed our story on the box to let them know about the parabola technology. When they open the package, they find small packs of kluay tak. That gives the sense of cleanliness,” he said.
With the premium price, people started calling Banana Society “kluay tak hi-so”. Through all the help he received from academics and government funds, it was time to pay back.
Wutthichai had an agreement with the Innovation House that he would open his plant as a learning centre to transfer knowledge and technology to others after two years of operation.
“I am glad that what I did became the standard of kluay tak business today. My solar-dried bananas also inspired many others to follow suit,” he said.
Today there are plenty of choices of solar-dried bananas and they are commonly called kluay dome, a short form of kluay tak dried in a parabola dome.
About a decade ago when other manufacturers started to produce solar-dried bananas, Banana Society expanded its production line to chocolate-dipped solar-dried bananas, the first of its kind.
“With the chocolate coating, I can add more value to the solar-dried banana. I can sell it for 10 baht a piece,” he said.
More flavours were later added, including strawberry, green tea and an option mix of almond crush. In addition, Banana Society also produces
syrup made from solar-dried bananas. In the future, it plans to introduce energy bars made of kluay tak mixed with CBD oil, or cannabidiol extracted from Cannabis, targeting the European market.
Today, Banana Society produces about 200 tonnes of solar-dried bananas a year. About 60% of the products are for export, mostly to Europe. The company creates work for 30 farmer families who live not only in Phitsanulok but also in nearby provinces like Sukhothai, Nakhon Sawan, Phichit and Kamphaeng Phet. Its revenue reached 50 million baht last year.
“I never thought that my family business would come this far,” he said. He considers himself lucky that he met good scholars who guided him in the right direction.
“I couldn’t have done it better myself. It was a good combination of luck that I met the right people, the R&D and the hard work that contribute to my success today,” he added.
I never thought that my family business would come this far