By WU VUIDE
PENAMPANG: For 19-year-old Heraldine Jamain, a call-up to represent Malaysia at the World Food Forum (WFF) and Global Indigenous Youth Forum (GIYF) 2026 in Rome this October came as a surprise she never imagined.
“I was very surprised. I did not expect it,” she said, recalling the moment her name was announced to receive a certificate during the launch of Kaamatan International Week (KIW) 2026 and Jungle Food Labs at the Hongkod Koisaan, Kadazan Dusun Cultural Association (KDCA) here.
What she initially thought was a routine certificate of appreciation turned out to be a mock air ticket to Rome, presented by Deputy Chief Minister I and chairman of the state-level Kaamatan Festival organising committee, Datuk Seri Dr Joachim Gunsalam.
“I was surprised to receive the invitation because I thought it was merely a certificate of appreciation,” she said, adding that she had assumed it was linked to recognition for Ropuhon Kiasu Highland’s contribution in preparing traditional cuisine during the event.
Heraldine was selected after her team, comprising her mother and aunt, won a forest food cooking competition in Tambunan last year.
Now preparing for Rome, the Kampung Sunsuron native said she intends to showcase Sabah’s traditional cuisine on the global stage.
She plans to prepare dishes and drinks such as lihing (rice wine) and kopi baras (rice coffee), although she expects most preparations and ingredient processing will only be done upon arrival in Italy to ensure freshness.
She said transporting traditional ingredients remains one of the main challenges.
“Some foods can be prepared earlier, but many ingredients are difficult to bring there,” she said.
Despite this, she remains committed to presenting Kadazandusun food while highlighting the value of forest-based ingredients for younger generations.
Heraldine, who is known in her village by the nickname “Kulipot” also said she hopes to open a food business in future, although plans are still at an early stage.
For now, she is focused on improving her skills while representing Tambunan’s traditional flavours abroad.
Cooking is not new to her. She said she began learning at a young age while helping her mother prepare meals using ingredients gathered from nearby forests.
“Since I was small, I followed my mother in the kitchen. While helping her, I learned traditional cooking from her,” she said.
A former SMK Tambunan student, she did not continue to Form Six and instead chose to assist her family in their florist business.
Despite her age, she can already prepare more than 50 traditional dishes, many of them using wild forest ingredients commonly found in Sabah’s interior.
Among the ingredients are tuhau (wild ginger), forest vegetables, and freshwater fish such as pelian.
However, she said sourcing these ingredients has become increasingly difficult due to environmental changes and land clearing.
“There is a shortage now. That is why we need to go deeper into the forest to look for the ingredients,” she said.
She added that some ingredients are seasonal, while others are becoming harder to find.
“Wild ginger can still be found, but sometimes we need to go far into the forest to get it,” she said.
Her family usually gathers the ingredients themselves, although they occasionally buy supplies from others.
The youngest of eight siblings said she is determined to continue preserving the family tradition passed down from her mother.
Heraldine was selected after her team, comprising her mother and aunt, won a forest food cooking competition in Tambunan last year.
