Our Team

A Strong Community

Behind the business of making tropical fruit preserves is a tightly knit team. Many of the staff at Awani have worked with us since we started life in 2007. At our highland kitchen, most of our staff are from the local village and are part of a strong community at home and at work. There is a sense of belonging, confidence and ownership among our team. There is also a sense of pride in seeing a product that we have made, enjoyed by customers in international retail outlets and win international awards.

Our Home in Bali’s Highlands

Most of Awani’s staff live a stone’s throw from our kitchen in the village of Luwus.  Luwus is on the way to the lakelands of Bedugul and has increasingly seen more tourist traffic heading north. We are tucked away off the main thoroughfare and once in the grounds of the farm, we are in a little haven. There is constant chatter and banter at the kitchen as the day progresses as we work through the tasks of the day, whether picking and processing fruit, cooking, or packing orders.

Balinese Festivals

Much of Balinese home life is dominated by religious festivals celebrated in each village. The big ones are Nyepi, the Balinese New Year, Galungan and Kuningan which are like Christmas twice a year. Bali’s famed ceremonies are called Upacara (pronounced “oopachara”) and are a wondrous sight. During these festivals, our Balinese staff dress in their starched white ceremonial clothing and head to the temple in a procession on the road, which can quite literally be a traffic stopper!

Offerings to the Gods

Another important feature of Balinese religious life is the making of offerings to the gods to ask for prosperity and good luck. Offerings are traditionally made by hand with natural materials such as grass, coconut leaves, rice, fruit and vegetables. You see them everywhere in Bali, in temples, doorways, even on the road. Each day, these beautiful offerings are made at the temple in our kitchen grounds to ask for the blessings of the gods.