We were poking around upcountry Maui and driving its narrow, twisting roads, but by midafternoon we had to turn around. We had an important date at a lower elevation.
Forget meeting friends for mai-tais or heading to Lahaina for the sunset. We were going to herd the animals at Surfing Goat Dairy.
Herding anything may be the last activity one considers for a Maui vacation. But the dairy is one of several island farms that have opened for public tours over the last few years. They offer the chance to explore the island’s back roads, meet the growers and learn something about the exotic fruits, vegetables and cheeses you’ll encounter and enjoy on Maui.
“It’s a growing national trend,” says Maui resident Charlene Kauhane, a board member of the Hawaii Agri-Tourism Association. “Visitors are looking for authentic experiences, for opportunities where they can meet locals and buy local.”
And sometimes, you just want a break from the beach. So let’s go down on the farm on Maui.
Alii Kula Lavender Farm
Even before you arrive, you’ll detect Alii Kula Lavender Farm from the lovely fragrance wafting over Upcountry. It comes from 45 lavender varieties planted over 10 acres in Haleakala’s foothills. You can meander over paths on your own, or join one of the walking tours. You’ll learn about lavender’s culinary uses and healthful benefits, as well as the farm’s dedication to practicing agriculture in a sustainable way.
Alii Lavender also offers workshops in wreath making and container gardens, and other special events. Continue reading ‘Down on the farm on Maui – San Jose Mercury News’
Tag Archive for 'Macadamia Nuts'
Derek Lanter clearly remembers his first date with the “dark side.” In 2001 he was living in Berkeley, Calif., when Scharffen Berger, the company that reputedly makes America’s finest dark chocolate, was setting up its operation there. He and a friend decided to visit Scharffen Berger’s factory for a tour and tasting.“Having worked with coffee as a buyer and roaster for Uncommon Grounds Coffee Co., I had experience processing coffee beans and evaluating the brew made from them, but that was the first time I saw cacao beans being roasted, ground and manufactured into chocolate,” Lanter recalled.
“Scharffen Berger was using beans from Colombia, Madagascar, Ecuador, Ghana and Indonesia. We learned about the equipment and process, and tasted chocolate at different stages and in different forms, from the roasted nib to pure cacao liquor; sweet milk chocolate; and semisweet, 62 percent; bittersweet, 70 percent; and extra-dark, 85 percent chocolate. It was such a mind-opening experience!”
Today, Lanter tastes chocolate nearly every day as the sales and marketing manager for Waialua Estate, a subsidiary of Dole Food Co. that grows 20 acres of cacao and 155 acres of coffee on Oahu’s North Shore. According to Lanter, chocolate made from locally grown cacao is being favorably compared with world-renowned brands such as Amano, Amedei, Guittard and Michel Cluizel. Continue reading ‘Cacao celebration’
KAILUA-KONA (AP) – After 14 years of serving the Big Island, financially strapped Japan Airlines has ended its flight between Tokyo and Kona International Airport.Passengers arriving Friday on JAL Flight 70 from Narita International Airport were greeted with lei and live Hawaiian music, the Big Island Visitors Bureau said.
JAL offered the only direct international flight outside of North America to the Big Island, the bureau said. Since the inaugural Kona flight in June 1996, JAL has carried more than 980,000 visitors between Narita and Kona, it said.
”It is also a vital carrier of Big Island exports including macadamia nuts, papayas, coffee, spirulina, abalone and desalinated sea water to the Japanese market,” the bureau said in a news release.
”The JAL flight is without a doubt the most important international route for Hawaii island. The positive impact it has made on our economy for the last 14 years is highly significant, and we truly hope to welcome JAL back someday,” Continue reading ‘Last JAL Kona-to-Tokyo flight lands on Big Island’
Hilo, Hawaii — CHERIMOYA, calamansi, rainbow papaya. Puna ricotta, poha berries, lilikoi. Lava salsa, dinosaur kale, Hamakua mushrooms. This is the exotic-food litany on the lips of pilgrims who go to the Hilo Farmers Market, held twice a week on the lush eastern side of the Big Island.Hawaii More Photos »
On a Saturday in mid-December I was in the greedy throng, caressing a cluster of longan, or “dragon eye” fruit; sampling a fresh, made-to-order green papaya salad; sidling up for a whiff of ripe, fragrant mango.
The Big Island, a k a Hawaii, is the biggest agricultural producer in the state. But its farming history is one of immigrant fruit — produce that is itself a pilgrim. Virtually everything that is grown in the Hawaiian islands today is an exotic, brought in from somewhere else by sailors, merchants and contract laborers; pineapple, long seen as Hawaii’s signature fruit, was introduced to the Kingdom of Hawaii in 1813 by Don Francisco de Paula y Marin, a Spanish adviser to King Kamehameha I.
On my December visit I set off in search of unusual agritourism experiences from a recent wave of Big Island farms. Though agricultural production has been geared largely toward industrial export and plantation-scale production over the last century and a half — entire crops of bananas, pineapple, macadamia nuts and sugar cane were shipped overseas, while almost everything else had to be flown in from the mainland — that mindset is shifting.
Continue reading ‘Exotic-Food Tasting on Hawaii, the Big Island – New York Times’
The bees and the trees (and tomatoes, cucumbers, melons, mac nuts…)
Special to Hawaii247 by Andrea Dean/Volcano Island Honey
Do you know that one-third of all the food you eat is pollinated by bees?
The decimation of bee colonies is a threat to food production in Hawaii. In Hawaii we do not have the disappearance of bees (Colony Collapse Disorder or CCD), but we now have the devastating and aptly named varroa destructor, commonly known as the varroa mite.
The varroa mite is a parasite that attacks honey bee adults, larvae, and pupae. The varroa mite has been know to destroy up to 90 percent of wild hives and beekeepers can easily lose all or a majority of their managed hives.
Until recently, Hawaii and Australia were the only remaining varroa free places in the world. The varroa mite was found on Oahu in 2007, unfortunately this did not result in quick and aggressive action by the private or government sector. As a result, the mite has now been found in hives on the Big Island.
Continue reading ‘The bees and the trees (and tomatoes, cucumbers, melons, mac nuts…) | Hawaii 24/7′
Shave Ice
By TOM STEVENS, For The Maui News
POSTED: September 30, 2009
Amid all the chatter and bluster of isle politics, there arise from time to time truly historic occasions. One of those is coming down on Maui next month.
On Oct. 15, the state Commission on Water Resource Management will hear closing arguments on the future of the Central Maui watershed. The 9 a.m. contested case proceeding should pack the Iao Congregational Church’s Konda Hall, so interested citizens will want to get there early. No public testimony will be taken.
To draw attention to this fateful session, a public "river walk" will be held this Friday afternoon from Iao Valley to Market Street in Wailuku. At the end of the walk, the Native Intelligence store will host water rights speakers during Wailuku’s "First Friday" festivities. Later the same day, commission staff members will travel to the Paia Community Center to seek public input from 5 to 9 p.m. on East Maui water issues.
The contested case proceeding takes as its prologue a startling "proposed decision" the commission’s hearings officer issued in April. At that time, Lawrence Miike recommended that the commission partially restore the historic flows of Central Maui’s famous "four waters" – the Waihee, Waiehu, Iao and Waikapu streams.
Written by Leilani Adriano / Correspondent
Monday, 28 September 2009 18:23
LAOAG CITY—Who says that macadamia nuts can only be grown in the state of Hawaii?
Not anymore, as interested Ilocos Norte farmers are now ready to cultivate a variety of macadamia nuts ideally grown in a tropical climate like in this province.
This was announced by Ilocos Norte Gov. Michael Keon on September 23 after company investors from Hawaii manifested interest in growing macadamia nuts in the province.
Based on scientific study, experts say Ilocos Norte’s rich soil and weather condition have been tested and proven “feasible” to cultivate macadamia nuts, a multimillion-dollar industry in Hawaii.
The proposed cultivation of macadamia nuts in the province, however, needs to be discussed further among Ilocano farmers and groups and individuals interested to venture into this newly introduced investment for the province.
The governor, who visited Hawaii together with some provincial board members, mayors and vice mayors two months ago, said it is a “good idea” to introduce the cultivation of macadamias in some idle lands of the province so that farmers, private business and the government could benefit from it.
This, however, does not mean that farmers would be shifting the traditional planting of cash crops like rice, corn, garlic, onions and other high-value crops, such as locally grown vegetables, but also to provide opportunity among farmers to try cultivating other alternative sources of income, like planting macadamias.
Continue reading ‘Ilocos farmers to grow Hawaiian macadamia nuts’
by Dan Vallada – FoodBizDaily.com Sao Paulo
The macadamia nut has been cultivated in Brazil for four decades. Researchers are trying to increase its productivity and resistance.
The commercial cultivation of macadamia nuts in Brazil is recent, started only 40 years ago and productivity is still low. The country, the seventh in world production (2,400 tonnes in 7 thousand hectares), has about 250 producers, 160 of them in the State of Sao Paulo. The biggest Brazilian harvest happened in 2006, with 3,500 tons. Therefore, technicians and researchers are joining forces to study its varieties, nutrition, genetic improvement and phytosanitary control.
Continue reading ‘The efforts to produce Macadamia Nuts in Brazil’
Wednesday, September 9, 2009
Agriculture Layoffs Will Impact Hawaii Exports The House Agriculture Committee will hold a second informational briefing on the impact of potential layoffs for agricultural inspectors. Tomorrow, Ag Chair Rep. Clift Tsuji will focus on Hawaii’s wide range of exports. You can see it live on Olelo, Ch. 49.
WHAT: The House Agriculture Committee will hold a meeting to gather information on the negative impact of potential agriculture inspector layoffs on Hawaii’s export industry, including plants, tropical flowers, tropical fruits/papaya, macadamia nuts, coffee, and more.
WHEN: Thursday, September 10, 2009
1:00 p.m.
WHERE: State Capitol, Conference Room 325Posted by Georgette at 11:12 AM
Hawaii House Blog: Agriculture Layoffs Will Impact Hawaii Exports
“The current status of the pili is equivalent to that-of the macadamia some 30 years ago,” says Richard A. Hamilton, a macadamia breeder at the University of Hawaii at Manoa. “It has great potential to develop into a major industry.” (The expensive macadamia nuts are in demand in Korea, Hong Kong, Singapore and Austria.)
Commercially-Viable Pili Nut Deserves Attention | Agriculture Business Week
Here is the PDF file for the *Hawaii Macadamia Nuts (Final Season Estimates)* Report.
Please visit the website for more information: http://www.nass.usda.gov/hi/
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Contact Information:
Mark E. Hudson, Director
USDA NASS Hawaii Field Office
1421 South King Street
Honolulu, HI 96814-2512
Office: (808) 973-9588 / (800) 804-9514
Fax: (808) 973-2909
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“HAWAII MACADAMIA NUTS” reports are available on our website and also PRINTED twice a year. Subscriptions for PRINTED copies are free to those persons who report agricultural data to NASS (upon request) and available for $2 per year to all others.
Final Season Estimates Higher For 2006-2007 Crop Year
Hawaii?s 2006-07 end-of-season macadamia nut harvest is estimated at 58.0 million pounds net, wet-in-shell, up 4.0 million pounds from last season?s harvest, according to USDA, NASSHawaii Field Office. While not the highest on record, this season?s output matches the previous high set back during the 1997-98 crop year.
Weather for 2006 was mixed. Approximately six weeks of rainfall from late February thru March occurred statewide. For some macadamia nut orchards located in normally drier areas, the rainfall was welcome. However, macadamia nut orchards located in normally wet areas suffered lower output due to disease problems.
Early in the season, one large processor announced it would limit nut purchases from independent growers. Many growers have reported that the lack of an outlet to sell their nuts has been a problem and with lower nut prices, the crop has not been harvested by some growers. Some farmers have reportedly gone into other commodities due to the low prices being paid and the lack of an outlet to sell their nuts. Growers have also related that feral pigs were a problem in some areas. The feral pig problem has increased in some areas; probably due to growers leaving nuts on the ground and providing a food source for pigs which increased survival of offspring, lending itself to more pigs foraging for food.
Crop losses were estimated at 11.0 million pounds or 17 percent of the total crop. Immature nuts ranked as the highest cause of losses at nearly 38 percent followed by koa seed worm damage and moldy or rotten nut losses with 19 percent and 17 percent, respectively. Overall yields averaged 3,867 pounds per acre (net, wet-in-shell), 29 percent higher than the 2005-06 crop year.
Total acreage for 2006-07 decreased 1,300 acres to 17,000 acres while harvested area totaled 15,000 acres, a 3,000 acre decline from last season. The farm price for net, wet in-shell macadamia nuts averaged 67.0 cents per pound, 14.0 cents less than the 2005-06 average.
Crop Losses Measured By Processors Lower
Growers delivered an estimated 65.0 million pounds of macadamia nuts, wet-in-shell, to processors during the 2006-07 season. About 11 percent of the harvest was culled, resulting in 58.0 million pounds net, wet in-shell. The equivalent gross weight of losses, after adjusting for what would be the expected weight before the damage, was 11.0 million pounds, 11 percent less than last season?s revised estimates. Losses from nut immaturity ranked at the top with just under 38 percent of the total losses. Koa seed worm damage was the second most common type of loss at 19 percent, followed by losses from moldy or rotten nuts at 17 percent. Macadamia nut losses shown in this report include only those culled by processors and do not include losses that were culled at the farm before delivery.
U.S Nut Production Up 9 Percent, Value Down 17 Percent
The 2006 U.S nut production is estimated at 1.59 million tons (in-shell basis), 9 percent greater than a year earlier. The almond crop is 953,000 tons, up 23 percent from 2005. Walnut production in 2006, at 346,000 tons, is down 3 percent from the previous year. The pistachio crop is 119,000 tons, 16 percent smaller than 2005. Pecan production in 2006 totals 103,150 tons, a 26 percent drop from 2005. The hazelnut crop, at 43,000 tons, is 56 percent larger than the previous year. Macadamia production is 29,000 tons, up 7 percent.
The 2006 U.S. value of utilized nut production is estimated at 3.45 billion dollars, down 17 percent from the 2005 value. The almond crop is valued at 2.04 billion dollars, 19 percent less than 2005. Walnuts are valued at 554 million dollars, 1 percent less than 2005. Pistachio value for 2006, at 455 million dollars, is 22 percent less than last year. The value of the pecan crop decreased 21 percent to 321 million dollars. Hazelnut value, at 46.4 million dollars, is 25 percent below last year. The macadamia crop is valued at 38.9 million dollars, down 11 percent.
FREQUENCY: January & July RELEASED:
February 9, 2007
Here is the PDF file for the *Hawaii Macadamia Nuts (Preliminary Season Estimates) *Report.
mac-pre.pdf
Please visit the website for more information: http://www.nass.usda.gov/hi/
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Contact Information:
USDA NASS Hawaii Field Office
1421 South King Street
Honolulu, HI 96814-2512
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