01/05/2025

THURSDAY | MAY 1, 2025

6

Recycling reinvented for a greener M’sia

Mother’s recipe fuels

CYBERJAYA: In 2018, a brief moment changed Mohamed El-Fatatry’s life and potentially the future of Malaysia’s e-waste industry. While watching a National Geographic documentary on illegal plastic waste shipments to Malaysia, he was struck by a firm warning from a former minister: “Stop sending your waste to us.” For Mohamed, 40, a Finnish entrepreneur with Arab roots, those words felt like a calling. Determined to learn more, he uncovered a troubling paradox. Despite Malaysia having more than 50 licensed e-waste facilities, recycling rates remained low at about 30% to 35%. “I kept wondering, where do people dispose their old electronic items?” He discovered that most people either stashed old devices away, handed them to dealers or dumped them with household rubbish. Recognising that the issue was not infrastructure but accessibility and awareness, Mohamed founded Electronic Recycling Through Heroes (ERTH) in 2019, a social enterprise that makes recycling easier and more rewarding. ERTH’s model mobilises freelancers, called “heroes”, to collect e-waste directly from households and businesses. In 2023, ERTH secured investment from the Gobi Dana Impak Ventures Fund, backed by Khazanah Nasional Berhad under its Dana Impak initiative. Mohamed’s journey began humbly. Upon arriving in Malaysia, he met local phone dealer S.H. Lim, who had stockpiled more than 4,000 broken phones, unwilling to trust traditional recyclers. “We didn’t receive any grant from Khazanah initially. Their investment came later as equity because our company strongly aligned with habits through tech, trust and everyday heroes o Driven by purpose, ERTH transforms country’s e-waste

son’s smoked clams success KOTA BHARU: Continuing the legacy of his late mother, a young entrepreneur from Kampung Badang has transformed a family recipe for etok salai , or smoked clams, into a booming business, with daily sales reaching an impressive 400kg. Muhd Haffiz Hassan, 26, a former farmer, never imagined that taking over the business left by his mother, Hamina Ibrahim, 54, who died in early 2020, would lead to such success. What began with sluggish sales has grown into a thriving venture, attracting both local customers and foreign tourists. “There was a time when I nearly gave up due to poor response. But after about two months, I was inspired to open a second branch along Jalan Tok Sadang in Pengkalan Chepa. “That decision proved to be a turning point, especially after popular influencer Abe La uploaded content about our smoked etok and it went viral at the end of last year,” he told Bernama recently. The fifth of seven siblings, Haffiz explained that maintaining the freshness and quality of the smoked clams requires a meticulous cleaning process. Each batch is washed at least five times until the water runs clear to remove all traces of mud and sand. Every two days, he sources about 800kg of raw etok from his supplier. The clams are then marinated for nearly an hour in a blend of special spices using his late mother’s recipe, before being smoked over a shell fire for two hours. Haffiz offers his smoked etok in six flavours – original, spicy, sweet, tomyam, BBQ and paprika. “Each pack is sold at RM5 or RM10, and we deliver fresh stock four times a day to maintain quality,” he said. The product has gained popularity not only among Kelantanese customers but also in Thailand and Singapore. Haffiz runs the business with help from his younger brother Muhd Sukri, 24, and their aunt, Sarini Mahmood, 50.

Khazanah’s national strategic pillars,” Mohamed said. At the time, Mohamed had taken over struggling tech company Blue Bee Technologies, founded in 2016. After settling its debts, he shifted its focus entirely to recycling. “It was never just about making money. It was about proving the system could work for the environment, for people like Lim and for a greener economy,” he said. ERTH’s reverse logistics platform is simple – schedule a pickup and someone collects your e-waste free of charge. It offers instant DuitNow payments for working items, while non-working devices are collected, with a minimum of three items. Businesses enjoy additional services such as bulk collection, asset disposal, branded collection boxes and certified data destruction, starting from RM25. Today, major brands that include Maxis, DHL, Panasonic, Hong Leong Bank and the Selangor state government, are among ERTH’s clients. “What sets us apart is convenience, transparency and instant reward. People want to do the right thing, they just don’t want it to be a hassle,” Mohamed said. At its Cyberjaya headquarters, ERTH refurbishes usable items such as kettles, laptops and irons, selling them affordably to students and entrepreneurs – many of whom later return to recycle these items, completing a circular economy loop. Since its inception, ERTH has scaled 65 times and recycled over 2.5 million kilogrammes of e-waste, expanding services across the Klang Valley, Penang and Johor Bahru. Through a partnership with Pos Malaysia, every post office nationwide now serves as an e-waste drop-off point. ERTH’s affiliate programme empowers more than 200 active

ERTH spends over RM1 million a year on education, online advertising, school programmes and community outreach to raise awareness. – ADIB RAWI YAHYA/THESUN

Mohamed early education and stronger policies could ease this burden. “There’s no lack of capacity. What’s missing is a simple behaviour change,” he said. ERTH has also integrated artificial intelligence (AI) into its operations. AI analyses historical data to determine whether devices should be reused, repaired or recycled. It also optimises digital marketing to enhance product visibility. Corporations now collaborate on CSR initiatives, encouraging staff to recycle and sponsoring school programmes to instil environmental values. “If companies lead the way, it sends a message to employees and communities about the importance of sustainability.” believes

recyclers – some part-time, others full-time – to collect e-waste and earn commissions. “We’re not just building a recycling network – we’re building livelihoods,” Mohamed said. Despite strong infrastructure, Mohamed stressed that awareness remains a challenge. Many Malaysians still do not realise that improperly discarded e-waste can release toxic substances into soil and water. “People think: ‘What if I sell my old phone to a dealer?’ But usually, the device gets stripped for metals and the rest is dumped illegally,” he said. To address this, ERTH spends over RM1 million a year on education, online advertising, school programmes and community outreach.