In 2025, Sarawak’s youth are channelling their culinary passion into profitable ventures, fuelling an unprecedented rise in local food businesses.
From laksa stalls expanding via delivery platforms to bakeries run by young people leveraging social media marketing, these ventures are revolutionising how traditional flavours reach contemporary consumers.
Empowered by government funding and technology, youth-driven food businesses are emerging as an exciting force that blends heritage with innovation, while building meaningful economic opportunities across Sarawak’s vibrant and evolving food landscape.
Definition of “Local Food Ventures”
By “local food ventures,” we mean youth-driven micro-businesses across Sarawak that cook, craft, or package foods inspired by the state’s culinary roots—like ethnic comfort dishes, sweet and savoury snacks from native fruits, or heritage sauces passed down through Iban or Melanau traditions.
These businesses blend tradition with technology, relying on e-commerce platforms, social media engagement, and online delivery services to share Sarawak’s culinary culture with audiences both at home and internationally, ensuring that heritage flavours remain relevant in a rapidly modernising marketplace.
Why Are These Ventures Important?
The growth of Sarawak’s SME sector is evident: as of mid-2025, state authorities have disbursed RM204.3 million to assist over 37,600 MSMEs, including numerous youth-led enterprises, through schemes such as Go Digital, GERAK (graduates entrepreneurship), USTEV, and microcredit via SKMS and SPIKS.
Additionally, since 2021, this push has been reinforced by capacity-building measures, with over 930 training programmes benefiting 73,000 entrepreneurs by April 2025, illustrating how policy support is enabling a new generation of business leaders.
The Challenges Facing Youth Food Start-ups
Although the sector is gaining traction, local food ventures are still hindered by recurring structural issues:
Funding Gaps: Despite the availability of state grants (RM10–20K), younger business owners highlight challenges in understanding application procedures and obtaining follow-on financial support.
Market Visibility & Delivery Logistics: Low-commission services from platforms like Ketek are appealing, but concerns continue over whether they can endure market pressures and rival dominant operators such as Grab and FoodPanda.
Stiff Competition and Tight Margin: According to SAGO Incubator, Sarawak’s F&B market is saturated with larger players who enjoy economies of scale, resulting in smaller food entrepreneurs battling low profit margins and facing challenges in driving innovation amid fierce competition.
Lack of infrastructure and business support: According to youth entrepreneurs, securing premises is a major hurdle, with options often confined to less strategic locations, while licensing remains overly complex.
High rental expenses compound these issues, while assistance for digital adoption and operational scaling remains inconsistent.
Why Do These Problems Persist?
The hurdles facing food entrepreneurs in Sarawak are rooted in deeper systemic issues.
Rising costs of raw materials, labour, and rent place heavy burdens on small operators, particularly those lacking the scale to secure better supply rates or buffer price volatility.
In 2024, Deputy Premier Datuk Amar Douglas Uggah Embas identified cost pressures as a key threat to MSME sustainability.
Supply chains remain fragmented, with agriculture dominated by scattered smallholders, raising sourcing and logistics costs for food businesses.
Many young entrepreneurs also enter the field without training in branding, budgeting, or digital skills, leaving them at a disadvantage.
Meanwhile, entrenched market players with established followings dominate, and slower digital uptake reduces chances for smaller ventures to exploit e-commerce fully.
State Response and Emerging Opportunities
In response to these structural barriers, Sarawak has expanded its enterprise support ecosystem.
The MSME Hub, set to open in 2025, will act as a central platform for market access, funding advice, and mentorship.
Complementing this, the Kamek Digital Entrepreneurial Transformation Course under Sarawak United Showcase (SUS) 2025 has already upskilled over 150 entrepreneurs in livestream selling and retail integration.
Similarly, STEDI (Sarawak Tech Savvy Entrepreneur Development Initiative) trained 25 entrepreneurs in 2024 on digital branding and e-commerce, many from the food sector.
Together, these programmes are equipping young food entrepreneurs with the tools to compete effectively.
Pathways Forward
To support growth, more targeted actions are needed.
Funding schemes tied to mentorship could provide both capital and advice from experienced entrepreneurs, bridging key gaps for first-time founders.
Establishing shared infrastructure such as food micro-hubs in strategic towns like Miri, Sibu, and Bintulu could help reduce costs by offering communal kitchens, packaging facilities, and logistics support.
Additionally, promoting youth-run ventures at high-traffic events such as the Borneo Cultural Festival would boost visibility, while education programmes in schools and universities could encourage students to value and support local businesses.
Benefits and Stakeholder Gains
The impact of these interventions reaches well beyond individual entrepreneurs.
By creating jobs, diversifying food choices, and keeping traditional recipes alive, youth-led food ventures do more than sustain themselves; they help power Sarawak’s economic growth.
At the same time, consumers enjoy affordable, culturally rooted innovations, supporting the state’s journey toward PCDS 2030—a future defined by a strong, SME-driven economy with deep local roots and long-term resilience.
Conclusion
Far from being a short-lived trend, local food ventures demonstrate how young Sarawakians are integrating tradition with contemporary enterprise to build sustainable careers.
By continuing to invest in skill-building, market links, and mentorship, Sarawak can create a vibrant food entrepreneurship scene that boosts the economy and honours its cultural identity at the same time.
References:
- Sarawak Has Allocated Over RM204 mil to Advance MSMEs’ Growth
- Sarawak Scales Up Entrepreneur Support Through Grants, Skills, Digital Tools
- BCF Blends Culture, Tourism to Boost Local Economy, Says Tiong
- Sarawak Gastronomy Incubator
- Sarawak’s Own Food Delivery App Ketek Launches With Chinese, Iban Language Options
- Challenges and Way Forward
- MINTRED Continues to Support Sarawak SMEs Amid Economic Challenges
- Challenging Time Ahead for State Agricultural Sector
- Addressing Key Young Entrepreneurs’ Challenges
- Sabah and Sarawak to Get an MSME Hub in 2025
- Empowering Sarawakian SMEs, 25 Entrepreneurs Graduate From STEDI Programme