Planting seeds of success
By Joan Namkoong
Advertiser Food Editor
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| Dean Okimoto picks lettuce, a prized commodity at Nalo Farms in Waimanalo. He was on the verge of quitting farming when he partnered with restaurateur Roy Yamaguchi. Now he grows herbs and salad greens. |
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| Ed Miyashita and Dean Okimoto pick lettuce at Nalo Farm. When not farming his family's seven-acre farm, Okimoto serves as a distributor for other farmers.
Deborah Booker • The Honolulu Advertiser |
"Ten years ago, there was nothing." Now shoppers can find Kamuela tomatoes, greens and herbs, apple bananas and Ka'u oranges in regular supply, as well as seasonal shipments of O'ahu asparagus, Maui strawberries, Kaua'i sugarloaf pineapples and other good things.
Also 10 years ago, most Hawai'i restaurant kitchens bought almost nothing that was locally raised — Manoa lettuce, Maui onions, a smattering of other products. But the bulk of the fresh food, much of the seafood and all the meats and processed products (except for guava jelly and such) came from the Mainland. Today, local suppliers provide some restaurant kitchens with half of their produce, as well as most seafood, and some meat and specialty foods.
This is how Merriman judges the success of an effort launched in part by the dozen chefs who would become the Hawai'i Regional Cuisine group.
A decade ago, the chefs, who were beginning to make a name for themselves, met on the Big Island at Merriman's invitation to discuss how they could spend less time "sourcing" food products and more time in the kitchen.
But their dream went beyond their own interests, Merriman said, because they knew that high-end restaurants and resort hotels alone couldn't buy enough to create the economy of scale that would allow Hawai'i food producers to thrive and grow.
They said they hoped to see local foods spread into the supermarkets and see Hawai'i feed itself, Merriman said.
Ten years later, the Islands are still far from being self-sufficient. And food producers still struggle to achieve those all-important economies of scale.
But the story of how local foods became more widely available is a tribute to the sweat and determination of a small and disparate group of farmers, fishermen and food producers: counterculture visionaries, kama'aina farmers with a willingness to change how they'd been doing things for generations, Mainland retirees on their second careers.
Merriman and the other chefs say the food producers — and the scientists and agricultural specialists who helped them — are the unsung heroes of the HRC story.
Theirs is not an easy life. Many have gone under. Or, like Raymond Tanouye of Mountain Meadows on the Big Island, they have found that, as eagerly as chefs greeted his hydroponically grown gourmet salad greens, shipping the delicate vegetables proved too costly, with too much loss from products left sitting on airport runways. He has gone back to selling nursery plants.
A produce boom
Meanwhile, crops that have become more prominent in the past 10 years include tropical fruits — rambutan, starfruit, cherimoya, low-acid and sugarloaf pineapples, apple bananas — as well as herbs, greens, tomatoes, strawberries, cacao, vanilla, hearts of palm and melons. Aquaculture products such as moi and shrimp are more readily available.
Hawai'i is significantly less dependent on air freight and shipping: The state Agriculture Department reports that we now grow a greater percentage of such crops as beans, cucumbers, eggplant, onions, romaine lettuce, zucchini, tomatoes, sweet potatoes, bananas and watermelons than we did in 1992. Some of these crops are up by 10 percent while others have increased by half.
The biggest farms — Jefts Farm and Aloun Farm in Kunia — grow commodity crops like cabbage, bell peppers, watermelons, tomatoes and Chinese vegetables on large tracts.
Farmers in Waimea and elsewhere on the Big Island and in Upcountry Maui specialize in other commodity crops on a smaller scale. Specialty farmers with just a few acres plant higher-value fruits and vegetables.
"Farming has changed," said Pam Hirabara of Hirabara Farms in Kamuela, growers of specialty lettuces and herbs. Unlike longtime farming families, newer entrants into the market had to pay top dollar for their land, Hirabara said. "Every square inch has to pay," she said. "When Kurt sees a single head of lettuce go bad, he's in there digging for that cutworm."
And farming is more of a business than it was.
"It's hard to get farmers to understand what I do," said Dean Okimoto of Nalo Farms in Waimanalo, who has made a considerable success of growing herbs and salad greens by first partnering with restaurateur Roy Yamaguchi.
Okimoto, president of the Farm Bureau of Hawai'i, has made it a personal mission to get farmers to think and operate differently. "I am not the best farmer," he says. "I simply apply business practices to farming. If it's not quality product, I don't send it. If I can't supply a customer, I call him. I'll personally deliver last-minute orders." His goal: customer loyalty.
Making the change
In pre-Hawai'i Regional Cuisine, most established farmers sold through wholesalers. They planted everything at once, harvested and started over again, meaning their supply was inconsistent. They grew commodity crops and didn't have to fuss with the peculiarities of new-fangled greens, herbs and such.
Some growers weren't willing to change. But Okimoto, who was on the verge of quitting farming after a disease killed his basil crop, had little to lose when, through a chain of acquaintances, he was introduced to Yamaguchi, who had opened his flagship Hawai'i Kai restaurant in 1988.
"Roy told me to try and grow greens. No matter what it was, no matter the quality, he said he would buy it," Okimoto said. Today, the second-generation farmer is making a decent living on his family's seven-acre farm and also is a distributor for other farmers.
This concept of a middleman was important to the success of the chefs-farms partnership. "If you had five farmers and five restaurants, there were 25 deliveries," Merriman said. With a middleman, the trips were cut back, reducing costs. The middleman can find markets for excess product and fill a void when one farm fails to produce.
Problems enter the picture
Not all farmers have done as well as Okimoto in partnering with chefs. "The downside ... is that people who started out with the chefs became reliant on them," Kurt Hirabara said. "But as hotel chefs went out on their own, they didn't have the buying power, and their successors didn't always subscribe to the same philosophy. And some chefs got into financial trouble and hurt farmers."
Another factor that complicates the farming picture is a lack of labor.
Curtis Yamamoto is happy to be back working on his family's 70-acre Best Farms in Kamuela after a two-year stint as an auto mechanic in Honolulu. Hawai'i Regional Cuisine "has been a good thing," he said. "The chefs promote the local vegetables ... and I think people can taste the difference when it's fresh."
But Yamamoto is a rare one, Okimoto said: "There are just not enough young people going into the business."
Specialty crops require more work and nurturing than commodity crops. "The cost of labor is prohibitive as far as mass-market specialty products," said Kurt Hirabara, who is experimenting with haricot vert (French green beans), fingerling potatoes and other crops that are labor intensive. "Even though farming is more mechanized than 30 years ago, it still requires bodies. We don't have a labor pool like on the Mainland."
That's why Maui Pineapple Co., a subsidiary of Maui Land and Pineapple, isn't growing raspberries anymore. "It was a beautiful product, but it cost too much," said Maui Pine's Judy Nakamura.
Another issue facing farmers is new federal food safety guidelines similar to rules that are having a dampening effect in the meat and seafood industries (Hilo's fish auction closed, in part, because refitting to comply with the rules would be too costly).
"If these rules go into effect — and they probably will within 1 to 2 years — small farmers will be gone," Okimoto predicted gloomily.
Still, there is good news: new niche products and a new willingness to experiment.
Hawai'i has become home to about a half dozen seed-corn operations; it's now one of the top 10 crops here, worth $30 million, said Tish Uyehara, deputy director of the state Department of Agriculture.
Hawai'i's reputation for quality is increasing and with it, the export market.
On Moloka'i, for example, farmer Grant Schule, who grew baby vegetables for hotel restaurants until that trend died off, now specializes in papayas and herbs, shipping 5,000 pounds of herbs a week and 10,000 pounds of papayas. They are desirable because they are not genetically modified and are heat-treated for pests. "Grant has been able to adapt to changes in the market," said his wife, Janie.
Aloun Farms is doing well with sweet onions for the Mainland market. Papaya is re-establishing itself after a disease scare with the assistance of the new irradiation facility in Hilo.
"Value-added" has become a buzzword. Instead of selling pineapple fresh, or even in cans, Maui Pineapple is shipping sweet, low-acid pineapple already sliced and ready to eat in vacuum-packed plastic containers. In Kamuela, Uyehara said, farmers are pickling vegetables that otherwise would be too small or flawed to sell.
Chefs want to beef up cattle
Meanwhile, the chefs still have their wish lists. Merriman laments the lack of a steady supply of locally grown beef. "I think chefs would pay a premium for a superior brand of meat," he said.
The cost of shipping feed grain has decimated the state's cattle industry, but in the past decade, a few ranchers have dedicated themselves to producing forage-fed beef and lamb, an effort that's unfortunately been hampered by the recent drought, said Glenn Fukumoto of the University of Hawai'i's Cooperative Extension Service.
In aquaculture, the farming of moi, a prized Hawaiian fish, has taken off here; producers can't keep up with demand, said Dean Toda of the state's Aquaculture Development Program. Big Island Abalone is nearing completion of a new 10-acre abalone farm, and crayfish and lobster are also grown at Keahole.
Ceatech USA, a shrimp-farming operation at Kekaha, Kaua'i, has expanded from 20 to 40 production ponds, said senior vice president and co-founder Paul Beinfang, and its harvest is more than 1 million pounds a year.
Frozen fish — usually mahimahi — used to be the usual fare in hotels and restaurants. A few places would serve fresh opakapaka. Fresh 'ahi as sashimi, seared or grilled, was uncommon; opah, hebi, shutome, monchong and onaga were not even recognized for their fine eating qualities.
All this began to change as Hawai'i chefs demanded fresh fish for their tables. "Chefs like Alan Wong and George Mavrothalassitis made onaga popular," said Don Leong of Wing Sing Seafood, a purveyor of fish to restaurants. He has seen the volume of his fish sales increase by 30 to 35 percent over the past decade. "Chefs are more aware and educated about Hawaiian fish and products," he said.
Fortunately for consumers, the diversification of the fishing industry has also meant more fresh fish in restaurants and supermarket fish counters. "But," Leong said, "because there is more fish (being caught), we're exporting more, taking away supplies from the local market and pushing prices up. Our supply diminishes as California restaurants use Hawai'i fish." While the Hawai'i Regional Cuisine movement has made Hawai'i fish more popular elsewhere, Leong said, "I'd like to keep it here for local use."
The vision of regional chefs, coupled with the state's changing economy, have conspired to create considerable diversity in food production here, but there is still much to learn.
Pam Hirabara says she sees one sign of success that's not so good: In the early days of the Hawai'i Regional Cuisine movement, she said, "there were no farmers and no product.
"There was a great respect for farmers, from the chefs, as they began to produce. The younger chefs today have always had product and take it for granted. They don't revere the product or the farmers as much."
Still, says chef Merriman, who called that original meeting, "You never hear of (a chef) who has their own herb garden outside the restaurant anymore because it's not necessary. You can get anything you want. We used to spend all our time getting products, now we can concentrate on cooking. I'd say that proves our dream came true."
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Hawaii Regional Cuisine: The 10th Reunion
- Aug. 25
- 10 a.m.-3 p.m. Hawaii Regional Cuisine Waikiki Farmers Market Festival at the Royal Hawaiian Shopping Center; fresh produce and seafood exhibit, cooking demonstrations, second annual Vanilla Bean Recipe Contest, entertainment. Free.
- 6-10 p.m. Hawaii Regional Cuisine Gala Dinner, Sheraton Waikiki Hotel, 25 food stations by the dozen regional cuisine chefs and the 13 members of the Hawaii Island Chefs. Admission: $125 ($25 off with American Express charge); 931-3155.
Self-sufficiency in tomatoes? In Hawai'i, it's almost a reality
High on the list of every chef's wish list is a tomato with taste. Ten years ago, Hawai'i was importing most of its tomatoes, picked green, gassed and shipped to the Islands. Today, local farmers produce 80 percent of the tomatoes in our markets, most from Larry Jefts' farm in Kunia.
At least a dozen farmers, most on the Big Island, have found a niche among restaurants and consumers who prefer vine-ripened tomatoes.
"Erin Lee spawned an industry for vine-ripe tomatoes; she deserves a medal," said chef Peter Merriman. Lee's Lokelani Gardens tomatoes are grown exclusively for Merriman's restaurant in Waimea and in tastings over the past several years, have consistently been singled out as the best-tasting.
Kawamata Farms of Waimea has recently emerged as a major player in the vine-ripe tomato arena, supplying O'ahu supermarkets with their product tomatoes in clear plastic boxes. Kahua Ranch in the Kohala Mountains has transformed its greenhouses, once used for carnations, for tomato-growing. Erlinda Cadaoas and Herbert Koi grow tomatoes under the Sunrise Farm name in Waimea. Roy Honda is expanding his greenhouses in Captain Cook, expecting to produce 20,000 pounds a month of his Momotaro variety. Graf Shintaku helped to start a three-acre hydroponic tomato farm in Hau'ula, in the 1950s; today, his Green Growers farm turns out up to three tons of vine-ripe tomatoes a week during the summer.
This crop is one of the few that is consistently available to consumers at the retail level at natural food stores, specialty markets and some supermarkets on O'ahu. In stores on the Big Island, consumers have a choice among tomatoes, labeled by farms, perhaps a sign of things to come on O'ahu.
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| The Hawai'i Regional Cuisine group began 10 years ago with 12 chefs who wanted to address the dearth of locally grown produce, access to which would allow them to spend more time actually cooking.
Advertiser library photo |
- Sam Choy: Chef/owner Sam Choy's Kaloko, Sam Choy's Diamond Head, Sam Choy's Breakfast Lunch & Crab; franchises on Guam, in San Diego and Tokyo.
- Roger Dikon: Executive chef, PGA National Resort & Spa, Palm Beach Gardens, Fla.; Dikon, who had been executive chef at the Maui Prince Hotel, left the Islands in 1994 for the home of his wife, Mary, in Ecuador, but returned to the United States last year.
- Mark Ellman: Chef/owner, Penne Pasta in Lahaina, Maui; founder, Maui Tacos; Avalon in Lahaina, first of the free-standing regional cuisine restaurants, closed in 1998.
- Bev Gannon: Chef/owner Hali'imaile General Store, Joe's Bar & Grill; author of recently released "The Hali'imaile General Store Cookbook" (Ten Speed Press, $35).
- Jean-Marie Josselin: Chef/owner A Pacific Cafe Kaua'i, A Pacific Cafe Maui; chef/partner, 8-0-8 in Las Vegas; Josselin recently closed restaurants he owned on O'ahu and in Honokowai, Maui.
- George Mavrothalassitis: Chef/owner, Chef Mavro, Honolulu; formerly executive chef, Halekulani Hotel and Four Seasons Wailea Resort.
- Peter Merriman: Owner, Merriman's in Waimea and Merriman's Bamboo Bistro in Ma'alea, Maui; partner, Hula Grill, Ka'anapali, Maui.
- Amy Ferguson Ota: Chef/owner, Oodles of Noodles, Paradise Spice Co. & Catering, Kona, Hawai'i; formerly executive chef at Hotel Hana Maui and then Ritz-Carlton Mauna Lani.
- Philippe Padovani: Chef/owner, Padovani's Restaurant and Wine Bar, Doubletree Alana Hotel, Waikiki; formerly executive chef, Ritz-Carlton Maunalani, Manele Bay Resort.
- Gary Strehl: Executive chef, Loews L'Enfant, Washington, D.C.; formerly executive chef, Hawai'i Prince Hotel, chef/owner Park Cafe, Telluride, Colo.
- Alan Wong: Chef/owner, Alan Wongs, the Pineapple Room, Hawai'i Regional Marketplace, all on O'ahu, and Alan Wong's, Tokyo.
- Roy Yamaguchi: Owner and founding chef, Roy's restaurants in the United States, on Guam and in Tokyo; his flagship outlet, Roy's Hawai'i Kai, opened in 1988.
