There has been more hustle and bustle than usual in the bakery of the state-run vocational high school SMKN 3 Malang, prior to the Idul Fitri holidays, which fall on Sept. 20 and Sept. 21 this year.
Two teachers, three senior expert workers and dozens of students have been engrossed in producing various types of cookies and sweet treats to sell to those celebrating the end of Ramadan fasting month.
"We stopped receiving new orders from customers two weeks ago. We were afraid we would not be able to fulfill them all," said Titik Wuryani, one of the teachers, who is also the operational manager of the school's Vanda Bakery and Pastry.
Vanda Bakery and Pastry is a group organized autonomously by the students of the school's food management department.
All proceeds from the bakery's sales go toward the food management department.
One way of doing so is by producing cookies and other foods to sell to the public. Ramadan has traditionally been the month for them to earn the most profit as the orders for cookies normally increase sharply.
This Ramadan alone, the total revenue they bakery has made has reached Rp 30 million, or equal to 250 kilograms of cookies.
The normal revenue is Rp 15 million per month.
"All our products are produced by third-grade students who are entering pre-job training.
"They are trained here before they get jobs at hotels or bakeries outside the school," Titik said.
Under the supervision of three expert workers, nine students take turns to run the kitchen daily.
The students are not given a wage, as their work is considered part of their training to improve their culinary skills.
Besides, the money earned is put toward purchasing materials for the school.
It's because of such intensive training, according to Titik, that alumni of the school are sought after by domestic and international hotels in Kuwait, Malaysia and Singapore even before they finish their studies.
The bakery that started out with only basic cooking equipment and Rp 85,000 back in 1999 is now a thriving business.
"We keep making innovations in our recipes and introducing our products to the wider public. We did it.
"Our products are relatively well known here," said Yeti Setyorini, the assistant manager of the school's Vanda Bakery and Pastry.
The bakery currently has a number of modern oven units of star-rated hotel quality with a capacity to produce between 25 and 30 kilograms of cookies per day.
Thanks to the bakery, once students graduate they are already skilled in making cakes, bread, pastries, tarts and cookies at a high standard.
For this year's Ramadan and Idul Fitri, the students have prepared some 32 special cookies, mostly marketed to government institutions under the education agency and other offices close to the school.
"Many of our customers are lecturers at Brawijaya University, Malang State University and officials from the Surabaya and Jakarta education agencies," Titik said.
Maria Astuti, 29, an alumnus of the school's 1999 class, said she found the practice was very useful for her.
"It's true the students are not paid for their work, but they gain experience, which is much more valuable than the price of the cookies produced here," she said.
