The largest event of its kind in the State of Hawai'i, the Taste of the Hawaiian Range is sponsored by the Cooperative Extension Service of the University of Hawai'i at Manoa's College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resources (CTAHR) and the Mealani Research Station of the University of Hawaii-Manoa in Waimea, on the Island of Hawai'i.

Held at the Hilton Waikoloa Resort on September 10th, the 15th Annual Taste was a celebration showcasing not only the naturally grass fed Hawai'i grown beef but also pork, wild boar, lamb, mutton, goat and the many vegetables, fruits, value added products and other food products as diverse as coffee, tea, goat cheese, macadamia nuts and chocolate grown, produced and/or made on this island.

Kanu Hawai’i’s statewide Eat Local campaign is taking off on Hawai’i Island. Several island organizations are spearheading the effort here, including the Hawai’i Homegrown Food Network, the North Kohala Eat Locally Grown campaign, and Slow Food Hawai’i. Numerous events, workshops, farmers markets, restaurants and individuals are joining together for the week of September 25^th to October 2^nd to commit to increasing the amount of local food that is grown, offered and eaten. For detailed information about the week’s activities, see the following websites:

• North Kohala Eat Locally Grown Campaign
• Hawai’i Homegrown Food Network
• Slow Food Hawai’i
• Kanu Hawaii

I have been asked what I would plant right now, if I were settling on a small parcel in Hawai'i, and if I want to grow most of the food for my family, and live somewhat sustainably.

My needs for a good combination of food crops are:
1) an abundance of calories, oils, protein, greens.
2) foods not too difficult to grow, harvest and prepare.
3) foods that are delicious to eat.

For the second year in a row I’ve counted weekly produce advertising data from West Hawaii Today. Below is a comparison of the number of locally grown fruit and vegetable advertisements versus the number of imported fruit and vegetable advertisements.

Once again Choice Mart leads the pack with 250 local items and 423 imported items advertised. KTA promoted 214 local items and 502 imported items. Foodland/Sack N Save advertised 211 local items but a whopping 851 imported produce items, many of which, like avocado and mango, compete directly with Hawaii growers. Safeway ran ads for 96 local items and 603 imported items.