North Kohala Eat Locally Grown Campaign

Written by Andrea Dean.

Local food will be highlighted in restaurants in the North Kohala Eat Locally Grown week.
Local food will be highlighted in restaurants in the North Kohala Eat Locally Grown week.
Featuring Workshops, Film and, of course, Food!

If you like FOOD—growing it, cooking it, eating it, and talking about it—the North Kohala Eat Locally Grown Campaign has something for you! Farmers, ranchers, hunters, and fisherman in North Kohala provide our community with so many unique and delicious foods. In conjunction with the Kanu Hawai’i statewide Eat Local campaign, the North Kohala Eat Locally Grown Campaign encourages you to seek out, cook out, eat out, eat in, and generally celebrate our local foods September 25–October 2, 2010.

I Will…

The North Kohala Eat Locally Grown Campaign has a goal of getting 100 people in North Kohala to make an “eat local” commitment. Go online at www.kanuhawaii.org/northkohala and make a commitment to eat locally grown for a day, a week, or a meal! You can also make a commitment to host a local foods pot luck for your family and friends or to attend an event during the campaign week.

Eat Locally Grow Events

The campaign will kick off on Saturday, September 25th with North Kohala Eat Locally Grown Day at our local restaurants and markets. Participating local restaurants (Kohala Coffee Mill, Sushi Rock, Kava Kafé, Pico’s and more!) will create sumptuous specials using North Kohala produce, fish, and meats. The Hawi Farmers Market and Takata’s will also feature North Kohala Grown produce and products on that day.

Plants are not just for eating! They can also be used as a source of medicine. On Saturday, September 25th, 10 am - 2 pm, Pamela Noeau Day will teachIntroduction to La’au Lapa’au (Traditional Hawaiian Medicine).” In this class, Noeau will share Papa Henry Auwae’s philosophy and knowledge of herbs and spirituality. Several La’au preparations will be made in class and you will get to take a short walk to identify and discuss la'au.

On Sunday, September 26th from 9 am to Noon, the Hawaii Homegrown Food Network will hold aGrowing an Abundant Perennial Food Garden workshop at Mohala Lehua Farm (just minutes outside of Hawi on the Mountain Road). Craig Elevitch, Neil Logan and Sophia Bowart will teach participants how to establish a low-input garden of perennial food plants that can feed a family healthy, fresh food for years to come. A $15 donation is encouraged.

Also on Sunday, September 26th at 7 pm at the Kohala Intergenerational Center, Sustainable Kohala will show the film Ingredients. Ingredients has been making a splash at film festivals around the world and is the story of the people behind the national local foods movement- from the diversified farms of the Hudson River and Willamette Valleys to the urban food deserts of Harlem and to the kitchens of celebrated chefs Alice Waters, Peter Hoffman and Greg Higgins. Attention being paid to the local food movement comes at a time when the failings of our current industrialized food system are becoming all too clear. Narrated by Bebe Neuwirth, the film is a journey that reveals the people behind the movement to bring good food back to the table and health back to our communities.

The final Eat Locally Grown event will be the Plant and Seed Exchange Tent at the Kohala Country Fair on Saturday, October 2nd. Bring your seeds, plants or cuttings (coqui and fire ant free, please!) to share and trade with the community.

Grow Your Own Event

Want to support local agriculture, local economy and a healthier community? Your school, church, workplace, community group or ohana can host your own “Eat Locally Grown” pot luck, workshop, farm tour, gardening day, plant sale, fruit sale, or other events.Visit http://eatlocalhi.org/  to get involved, and for more information  please contact Andrea Dean at 960-3727 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

The North Kohala Eat Locally Grown Campaign is a project of the North Kohala Community Resource Center and is supported by the County of Hawaii–Office of Research and Development, USDA Farm Services Agency, Kanu Hawaii and Hawaii Island Retreat.

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