Pictured on every bag of Rowadu’s coffee is an image of a mighty buffalo with dotted black and white skin and two regal horns. In Toraja, South Sulawesi, where our coffee comes from, buffalo is so much more than its flesh and bones.
Long before money started to become a medium of exchange, people of Toraja used buffalo as a barter tool. This sturdy animal plays a crucial part in Rambu Solo, a grief and death ceremony, the heart and soul of Toraja culture. Locals believe that buffalo is a vessel for to reach nirvana, and sacrificing buffalo in this ceremony leads to a better life for the deceased in the next realm. By sterilizing the buffalo during childhood, it remains sacred until its time to be sacrificed at Rambu Solo.
Compared to buffalos in other parts of Indonesia, buffalo of Toraja tends to be bigger, stronger, and more stout with a valuation that rises every year. Owners usually leave the buffalo to eat and rest every day instead of using it to work in the field. Besides grass, it is also fed with jugs of milk and crates of eggs every day to build a perfect physique.
What determines the worth of a buffalo in Toraja is its physical trait and health. The most valuable buffalo is the one we choose to be the symbol of our coffee: tedong bonga. Tedong bonga is a buffalo with a cow’s coloring, black and white. For male tedong bonga, the presence of two perfect horns will increase its value even further. The market price for a healthy adult tedong bonga ranges from hundreds of millions until a billion Rupiah.
With such importance and value at play, it is no surprise that buffalo becomes a sign of prestige in Toraja; a representation of money and social status. A wealthy family and an influential person with good position are more likely to own tedong bonga, as its irrational price is too steep for common people.
The significance of buffalo in Toraja culture persists to this very day. Buffalo remains to be an important tool of exchange in weddings, business transaction, and death ceremony. It is the perfect representation of the beauty and the complexity of local Toraja tradition. Rowadu is proud to carry the spirit of Toraja and showcase it with our coffee.
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