Label debate delays local-food promotion
By Sean Hao
Advertiser Staff Writer
Two years ago, the state Legislature authorized a new "Made in Hawai'i" program to encourage the use of local products, but lawmakers are still waiting for the plan.
The program, to replace the state's "Made in Hawai'i" seal, has been delayed by lack of agreement on a logo and quality and content standards for processed foods. The state Department of Agriculture, which is in charge of the program, said the new seal could be ready for licensing in December, after more internal discussion and public hearings.
The old logo has been largely phased out.
"It's a trying process," said Matthew Loke, administrator for the Agricultural Development Division of the Agriculture Department. "The good news is we're moving forward. I would like to finish it before the Legislature starts up again" in January 2005.
A seal-of-quality program for fresh and processed foods could have significant implications for Hawai'i's $536 million agriculture industry, creating an incentive for food processors to use local ingredients in goods such as candies, juices, cookies, jams and pastries. That could help farmers of local produce such as macadamia nuts and guava compete with low-priced imports, as well as promote new products such as cacao, used to make chocolate.
The program was to begin last year, but ran into snags in determining the amount of local ingredients required for the "Made in Hawai'i" seal, agriculture officials said.
• Produced in the state • More than half the value of the product — raw materials, processing and packaging — must be produced in the state • Foods that use a higher percentage of local ingredients could get a higher-grade seal
The department is proposing a two-tiered program that would assign a higher-grade label to products that use more local content.
'Made in Hawai'i' qualifications
A state law already requires that products carrying the "Made in Hawai'i" label be produced in the state, with more than half their value — raw materials, processing and packaging — produced here. Processed foods that meet that standard might qualify for a new, lower-grade seal, while those using more local ingredients could get a higher-grade label.
In general, farmers want a high threshold set for local material, while food processors are concerned that high costs for local raw materials might not be recouped without effective marketing.
Regardless of which content standard is set, products using the new seal would have to meet certain quality standards. That requirement also has been a sticking point.
The state has no grade standards to cover all of the hundreds of processed foods, so it would assess quality case by case, agriculture department officials said.
There also is concern about whether the state has the resources to police such a program, and what it would cost growers and processors to license the new labels.
Fees would go to cover advertising to raise awareness about the "Made in Hawai'i" label, but if they aren't set high enough, the Legislature likely would have to appropriate money for advertising. If licensing fees are set too high, growers and food processors might not want to participate in the program.
Ultimately, the goal is to use the new seal for anything made in Hawai'i.
Reach Sean Hao at shao@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-8093.
