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Value-added innovation workshop will help farmers become more profitable

by Craig Elevitch

HOLUALOA, HAWAI'I - A workshop entitled "Value-Added Innovation for Hawai'i Growers: Making the Family Farm Profitable" will help growers hone their skills at adding value to their products and services. The free workshop will be held on March 20th in Hilo, March 21st in Kona, March 27th on Kaua'i, March 28th on O'ahu, and March 29th on Maui.

Competing with cheap imported agricultural goods, many Hawai'i farms have a difficult time selling their products profitably as raw commodities. The workshop will show how Hawai'i farm enterprises can differentiate their products to become more profitable, and therefore viable businesses.

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Newsletter 48 - February 2013

by Craig Elevitch

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Aloha mai!

One of the big challenges of eating locally grown food in Hawai‘i for those of us who grew up in North America is that the crops that grow best in this environment are not necessarily the same as we were raised on. Temperate climate grains, Irish potatoes, and many vegetables are not easy to grow in tropical Hawai‘i. ‘Ulu, ‘uala, and kalo, for example, do grow well here, but we were not raised on them, so we did not develop a palate for them when growing up.

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Newsletter 47 - January 2013

by Craig Elevitch

Aloha!

A new year is upon us. When the Hawai’i Homegrown Food Network began nearly four years ago the local/sustainable food movement was in its infancy. Now that movement has entered mainstream consciousness. But it is far from mature, far from producing public policies that actually help the small, sustainable food producer. Yet as a vibrant grassroots movement, perhaps that is its strength.

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Newsletter 46 - December 2012

by Craig Elevitch

Aloha!

This is a time of year when we pay special attention to our relationships with each other and to the natural world around us. In a world of mass production and marketing, it is easy to forget that our individual relationships are the foundation for true community health and resiliency. With superstores full of a seemingly endless supply of food, it is also easy to forget that our relationship to the environment is the foundation for healthy ecosystem functioning.

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Ku I Ka Mana -- Beginning Farmer Training

Starting in the Hāmākua region of Hawai‘i Island, The Koala Center, in partnership with several local government agencies and academic institutions, will recruit, train, and support at least 40 new farmers over the next two years. The program will also help these new farmers develop business plans, secure farm leases, gain access to farm equipment and materials, and successfully produce, market, and distribute their crops. As part of this program there is a training site in Honoka‘a that will be used to teach successful farming practices.

For information and application, Click here

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