Manaung’s clay pot makers in a slump

By Aung Kaung Zaw 26 Mar 2020

Aung Kaung Zaw  | DMG
March 26, ManAung

Fewer people are working at clay pot-making businesses in Arakan State’s Manaung area as demand for the pots and their usage dwindles.

Clay pot workshop owner Daw San San Aye said that clay pot-making businesses can now be seen at only three villages, even though one-third of Manaung’s population used to work in clay pot workshops.

“This business has been running since my parents’ generation,” she said. “It has been over 80 years. My parents started this business so this is a family business. But people use iron pots these days instead of clay pots. Actually, curries taste better from cooking in clay pots.”

According to clay pot makers, pots for water and curry, and mortars for grinding, are currently still selling, though in better times a larger array of clay pot products were in demand.

Daw Hla Nu May said that further hobbling the trade, clay pot making businesses can only produce from January to April and have to be stopped during the rainy season.

“We aren’t able to say exactly how many pots can be finished in a day. We finish 20 pots some days. Sometimes, we finish 30 pots. The business starts in the morning and sometimes has to run until the next early morning. But we cannot work in the rainy season because the pots cannot be wet and we don’t have baking spots for pots,” she said.

She added that sand and wet clay are mixed in a five-step process for making the pots.

Currently, a small pot for cooking curry costs K700 (US$0.50) and a big pot for storing water is priced at K5,000, according to pot makers.