Speaker 1: Hello from Wonder Media Network. I'm Jenny Kaplan and this
Speaker 1: is Womanica. This month, we're pulling back the curtain to
Speaker 1: reveal women overlooked in their own lifetimes or in our
Speaker 1: historical accounts of the eras in which they lived. We're
Speaker 1: talking about the activists, thinkers, leaders, artists and innovators, histories forgotten. Today,
Speaker 1: we're talking about a woman who fused the culinary arts
Speaker 1: with chemistry to feed her country and free theom of
Speaker 1: colonial constraints. Her best known invention became an internationally popular condiment,
Speaker 1: and her food literally saved lives. Please welcome Maria Arosa.
Speaker 1: Maria Arosa was born on November twenty ninth, eighteen ninety three,
Speaker 1: in the coastal town of Taal in Batanga's Philippines. Her
Speaker 1: early childhood years were defined by war and strife. She
Speaker 1: grew up during the Philippine Revolution and the Philippine American War.
Speaker 1: Her father was a part of the resistance movement, first
Speaker 1: against Spanish rule and then against the US forces. As
Speaker 1: a steamship captain, her father would secretly carry Filipino soldiers
Speaker 1: and supplies from island to island. At one point, the
Speaker 1: family had to flee for safety, and Maria's father was
Speaker 1: even taken as a political prisoner. These experiences instilled an
Speaker 1: unshakable Filipino pride in Maria. When she was twenty three
Speaker 1: years old, Maria left home to attend the University of
Speaker 1: Washington as a government sponsored scholar. To help pay for college,
Speaker 1: she worked year round. Over the summer as she worked
Speaker 1: at fish canneries in Alaska, she absorbed all the information
Speaker 1: she could about packaging and preservation methods. During the school year,
Speaker 1: she worked as an assistant chemist in the School of
Speaker 1: Pharmacies Food Lab. In nineteen twenty one, Maria graduated with
Speaker 1: a bachelor's degree and master's degree in pharmaceutical chemistry, plus
Speaker 1: another degree in food chemistry. Maria could have stayed in
Speaker 1: the US after graduating. She was offered a job as
Speaker 1: an assistant chemist at the university, but she turned that down.
Speaker 1: In nineteen twenty two, Maria returned to the Philippines to
Speaker 1: work at the Bureau of Science. She wanted to get
Speaker 1: back to her country to share all that she'd learned abroad.
Speaker 1: Maria returned with a specific goal in mind. She saw
Speaker 1: how much the Philippines relied on food imports. She wanted
Speaker 1: to help make the country self sufficient and free it
Speaker 1: from foreign control. Part of this effort involved launching her
Speaker 1: own version of four H clubs. These clubs focused on
Speaker 1: improving conditions in rural areas by teaching local women how
Speaker 1: to prepare meals, preserve food, raise livestock, and tended gardens.
Speaker 1: Maria also contributed to the well being of rural communities
Speaker 1: by inventing the pala yoke oven. This was a riff
Speaker 1: on the traditional clay pot. Maria's version could make cakes
Speaker 1: made from local flour without using electricity. At the Bureau
Speaker 1: of Science, Maria focused on increasing food supply and limiting malnutrition.
Speaker 1: She explored all the ways to preserve food, such as fermenting, dehydrating, canning,
Speaker 1: and freezing. Maria pioneered a method for canning whole mangoes
Speaker 1: that allowed the Philippines to distribute this popular local fruit
Speaker 1: around the world. Maria was keen on using endemic ingredients
Speaker 1: to fix food and security in the Philippines. She used cassava,
Speaker 1: green bananas, and coconuts to make flour, fermented wine with
Speaker 1: local fruits and nuts, and extracted vinegar from pineapples. One
Speaker 1: of her most famous food creations was banana ketchup. When
Speaker 1: America colonized the Philippines, Americans brought along tomato ketchup, which
Speaker 1: became very popular, but it was pricey to import and
Speaker 1: tomatoes didn't grow well in the tropical climate. Maria didn't
Speaker 1: let that stop her country from enjoying the condiment. She
Speaker 1: mashed together saba bananas, brown sugar, vinegar, and some spices
Speaker 1: to make a sweet and tangy tomato ketchup alternative. She
Speaker 1: also added a bit of red dye to fix the
Speaker 1: less than appletizing brownish yellow color. Banana ketchup quickly became
Speaker 1: a staple in Filipino households and grocery stores, but Maria's
Speaker 1: name did not. Many Filipinos know her name because of
Speaker 1: the busy street named after her, but not for her
Speaker 1: culinary contributions. Over time, corporations saw the popularity of Maria's
Speaker 1: creations and began to produce them in mass, but they
Speaker 1: didn't credit or pay tribute to the original inventor. In fact,
Speaker 1: the first company to mass produce banana ketchup, Universal Food Corporation,
Speaker 1: credited its founder as the creator of the condiment. Still,
Speaker 1: Maria didn't stop there. She traveled all around the world
Speaker 1: to research food preparation and preservation techniques. She spent time
Speaker 1: in China, Japan, and Hawaii. When Maria returned, she was
Speaker 1: appointed chief of the Food Preservation Division and the Home
Speaker 1: Economics Division, and in nineteen thirty four she became head
Speaker 1: of the Plant Utilization Division of the Philippine government's Bureau
Speaker 1: of Plant Industry. Some of Maria's most significant inventions include
Speaker 1: Soilac and Derak. Soilac is a nutrient rich drink made
Speaker 1: from soybeans. It was considered a miracle food. Derac is
Speaker 1: a rice flower rich in vitamin B one. These two
Speaker 1: products were critical during World War II. When the Japanese
Speaker 1: army invaded the Philippines. After attacking Pearl Harbor, Maria had
Speaker 1: a choice to make evacuate with her family or stay
Speaker 1: and support her fellow Filipinos. The decision was clear. She
Speaker 1: told her family, my place is here. I cannot in
Speaker 1: conscience abandon my work and my girls. Maria became a
Speaker 1: captain for one of the underground guerrilla units. Food was
Speaker 1: scarce during the war. Imports came to a halt, and
Speaker 1: agricultural production stalled. Maria and her unit turned their attention
Speaker 1: to creating nutrient rich foods that would sustain the soldiers.
Speaker 1: As the war waged on, Filipino and American war prisoners
Speaker 1: were kept at the University of Santo Tomas prison camp.
Speaker 1: They suffered from poor living conditions and malnutrition. Maria figured
Speaker 1: out a way to smuggle food into the camp and
Speaker 1: began sending soylac. It saved thousands of Filipinos and Americans
Speaker 1: from dying of starvation. On February thirteenth, nineteen forty five,
Speaker 1: Maria was on the way to a bomb shelter during
Speaker 1: the Battle of Manila. Before she could make it, she
Speaker 1: was hit by shrapnel. A member of her team rushed
Speaker 1: her to the nearest hospital. Shortly after she arrived, the
Speaker 1: hospital was hit by an American bomb. Hundreds of doctors
Speaker 1: and patients died. Maria was one of them. In the
Speaker 1: chaos of the war, Maria was buried in a mass grave.
Speaker 1: Today it's still unclear exactly where she was laid to rest,
Speaker 1: though in twenty twenty, a memorial marker was on earth
Speaker 1: to the hospital where she died. All month, we're talking
Speaker 1: about Women behind the Curtain. For more information, find us
Speaker 1: on Facebook and Instagram at Wamanica podcast special thanks to
Speaker 1: Liz Kaplan, my favorite sister and co creator. Talk to
Speaker 1: you tomorrow.