Waste transformed into healthy food — Okara Project connects single mums and the sustainable community

An impactful and sustainable social innovation project always understands specific social issues in depth and targets the population clearly. “Okara Project: Transforming Soy Residue into Affordable Protein Sources for Underprivileged Families” aims to promote okara (aka soy residue in Japanese) as nutritious ingredients to the general public and reduce food waste. It also provides training and job opportunities for single mothers, so that they can support themselves financially with autonomy. The project has spotted okara, which was often left out in the wet market, to address various social issues and make different needs visible.

Protein deficiency from saving money on meat

It all started from a Japanese dish. One of the founders, registered dietitian Joyce has long been involved in nutritional counselling for underprivileged families. She noticed that many elderly and low-income persons have similar eating habits. “They think meat is expensive so they seldom consume it, which leads to protein deficiency. I tried to come up with cheaper alternatives while I read about a report which claims that replacing animal protein with plant protein will lower the mortality rate for chronic diseases by 30%.” On a trip to Mount Kōya in Japan, she came across a dish called “Unohana”, which mixes vegetables, konnyaku and okara—simple yet tasty. With an inspirational click, she realised okara is a good source of plant-based protein at a low cost. 

Single mums becoming community nutritionists 

Joyce joined forces with another registered dietitian Hannah, and social worker Eva, to launch the Okara Project. “We looked for small grants to test its popularity and feasibility.” As one of the Incubatees of MakerBay Foundation’s Impact Innovation Lab, they received The Social Innovation and Entrepreneurship Development Fund, to train 30 single mothers as  Okara Ambassadors for promoting plant-based healthy diets to the community, namely disabled persons and their carers, new immigrants, students, seniors and kaifongs. The training consists of three parts: basic nutrition knowledge, okara cooking class and promotional skills. By equipping these family carers with new nutrition knowledge, their eating habits will be enhanced through practice.

From newbies to hero mums

During the 6-month Incubation Period, they were most delighted to witness the development of the ambassadors. “Some of them are good at cooking but not speaking, and vice versa. After hosting several health talks and cooking workshops, they gained confidence and could even handle unexpected situations.” For example, just before one cooking workshop, Joyce found out there were no okara on the spot. While she was panicking, they did not fret and rose to the occasion, stalling for time until the okara was delivered to the venue. The activity went smoothly in the end, and she was moved.

From carbon reduction to social innovation ecosystem for sustainability 

Eva pointed out that food is a common language across all walks of life. The Okara Ambassadors can connect different communities in the workshops too. Besides, okara is often regarded as waste in the production process, thus the project reduces both food waste and carbon emissions. “If we look at SDGs (Sustainable Development Goals by the United Nations), this project has already covered 8 of the 17 goals, including reduced inequalities, good health and well-being for individuals; no poverty, responsible consumption and production and climate action for the community.” 

The ambassadors have also developed a series of bakery products with okara in a short period of time, and the team is now looking into mass production and selling to increase income and expand their customer base. They also hope to set up “Okara Research Centre” in the future, to let more people know about this multipurpose social innovation project and its benefits.