Making ‘bedak sejuk’ while the sun shines

Sing Huat setting out ‘bedak sejuk’ pellets out to dry at his business in Balik Pulau. — Photos: Bernama

A producer of “bedak sejuk” (cooling powder) in Penang is single-handedly continuing a nearly 50-year-old family enterprise, whose yield is highly affected by the weather.

Yeoh Sing Huat, 48, said the business was passed down to him by his late father, Yeoh Teng Beng, who founded Perniagaan Bedak Sejuk Lean Seng in Kuala Jalan Baru, a Chinese village in Balik Pulau.

Sing Huat, or more familiarly known as Ah Huat, said the business originally served the local community but had since gained customers across the country.

He took over after his father’s passing in 2016 at age 74, not just as a source of income but as part of the family legacy, he told Bernama.

Yeoh straining the bedak sejuk mixture in a lengthy production process. — Bernama

Sing Huat’s bedak sejuk is made with local rice and water, with no chemical additives.

The lengthy process requires soaking rice for about a month to allow it to ferment, with the water changed daily, before it is ground into a paste and strained to form pellets.

The pellets are then dried under the sun for at least three days, which requires favourable weather.

“The rice was soaked for up to a year in the past, but we have adapted the process.

“Even so, it still takes about 40 days from start to finish.”

Sing Huat said the weather was his biggest challenge.

In ideal conditions, he can produce up to 100 bottles a day, or about 20kg of bedak sejuk, but output drops in rainy season.

“When it rains, we can only work a few days a month,” he said.

“There were even times when we had to discard the product because it did not dry properly.”

Although the income is unpredictable, Sing Huat continues to handle the production process mostly by himself to preserve the bedak sejuk heritage.

His product is sought by many, including wholesalers who buy in bulk and rebrand it before selling.

The process of making the cooling powder is lengthy and includes sifting of the fermented rice mixture (above) and turning the resulting paste into pellets (below).

Sing Huat, a bachelor, admitted that he was unsure if the next generation would continue the business, as his siblings’ children had careers of their own.

“This is something used by everyone – the Malays, Chinese and Indians,” he said.

“If I don’t continue the business, who will?

“No matter how difficult it gets, I will keep going and hope someone will take over one day.”

Bedak sejuk, sometimes known as “grandma’s beauty secret”, is valued for its cooling, soothing and moisturising properties in hot weather.