Department of Agricultural and Resource EconomicsCollege of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resources

University of Hawaii

For Growers, Shippers, and Processors ofChinese, Poi, Dasheen andPacific Island Taros from Hawaii

Overthe past6monthsor so therehave been some very interesting taro­based products put on the market,one is Ted [avellana's taro chips fromKauai. Others have been Bill Pfeil'sMolokai Taro Chips; Honolulu Poi'sfreeze dried poi product, and HawaiiFood Productshas recently developedkulolo and cooked luau in a can. VeryNice! Keep up the good work andremember ifyou need some help giveus a call here at the Tattler.

Say, did you see what our ficti­tious companyNoKaOi Foods has de­veloped? Its frozen poi and kulolo to­go! They got the idea when one of

their clients men­tioned that theirson had a Big PoiAttack at Univer­sity of Michigan afew monthsback.So they FedX'd

Here at the Tattler, we are ex­tremelyconcemedabout thisbecause,quite literally, the competition couldroll right over us here in Hawaii, andits not just a question of low cost pro­duction. Unprofessional behavior onthe part of some people in the taroindustry, from farmers to distribu­tors, ismakingitharderforHawaiitomaintain its edge in the market place.We've heard accusations that: ordersreceived havegoneunpaid,pesticideshave been misused and resulted incrop losses for neighboring farmers(not to mention the ecological dam­age), and some taro organizations arenot livingup to their promised poten­tial. Feedback from the Mainland,thankfully, is that taro quality has im­proved somewhat. But, we must con­tinue to insure that you folks havepride in your product and that youonly put the best taro in your bags.Lastly, there are still taro farmersout there who are planting tarowithout a selling plan-thismay result in a very damag­ingover supply in the nearfuture.

Folks, we've got­ten more momentumin this industry just re­cently than has beenseen in years. But itscontinued improve­ments depend on allof you monitoring thequality of taro thatholds Hawaii's name. ~-.,...--..J......I

The responsibilityrests with you, wecan't do it for you.Fictitious NoKaOi FoodCompany, haslaunchedtwonewproducts: FreshFrozenPoi,andFreshFrozenKulolo(not shown). The Company'sowner, "Stickey" Jones, wants to target distant Mainland markets with theseproducts. Ofcourse,onthisandall hisproductshehasnutritionalandpreparation information, freshnessdating,and an interesting little story about the product.

VOL. 4, NO.1 [an.-May 1992

BUT FIRST

Now, before we get started withthis issue of the Tattler we'd like totake a moment to discuss a problemwhich has come to our attention a lotlately. We are sittinghere witha letteron our desk from a man who wouldlike to invest a lot of money in taroproduction in...Costa Rica (they pro­duce a better looking, less expensiveChinese taro than you). Next to it is aletter from a major agricultural orga­nizationinIndonesia whichwould liketo get more information on the taromarket in Hawaii and on the Main­land, as they have hundreds of acreson which to expand their talas (taro)plantation (their labor costs are a lotlower than yours).

I t' s hard to believe that it is Mayalready, and we haven't had a

chance to get even one Tattler out!Well, even if we've been a little tiedup, thereare otherfolks out therewhohave been able to make some greatstrides in the area of taro and taroproduct planning, production, andpromotion. One such stride wasOahu's celebration of AG DAY onMonday, March 30th. At an eveningfunction held at St. Andrew's Priorynear the State Capital, State of Hawaiiofficials, media personnel, and otherdecision makers got to sample thebest of the best in Hawaii agricultureand agricultural products. One suchproduct was a frozen taro-based des­sert formulated by Dr. Alvin Huangat UH. The event was sponsored bythe Department of Agriculture, theFarmBureau andtheCollegeofTropi­calAgricultureandHumanResources(see New Taro Products section be­low for more products).

1 The Taro Tattler VOL. 4, NO.1 [an-May 1992

" ,

him some frozen poi and when it ar­rived hedidn't know how to"make itlike mom does." Well, the little lightwent on in "Stickey" Jones' head. Hecalled up a packagingcompany and afew distributors,includingtheairportshops. NoKaOi now sees theirHo'opuku Aloha (gifts of love) prod­ucts, packed in dryice and leavingtheairport for the Mainland, just likeLampert's ice cream. Andtheyalllivedhappily ever after...

UPCOMING EVENTS

Hawaii Nature Center Hosts a TaroPatch Party

The Hawaii Nature Center at 2131Makiki Road onOahu will be holdingaTaro Patch Party on Saturday, June 6.This event will be botha learning expe­rience and a communityservice projectwith a chance for everyone to geta littledirty by working in a lo'i (taro patch).Bring water, a snack, sun screen andmosquito repellent. There is a smallcharge and admission is by reservationonly. Please callthe center at 955-0100for theexact startingtimeandtosign up.

He'eia State Park Offers Lectures onTaro

He'eia State Park located at 46465KamehamehaHwy. (about1mile northof the Windward Mall in Kaneohe) willbe hosting two talks on taro this sum­mer. Ricky Reppun will discuss "TaroGrowing" on July 2 and Ethel Leongwill talk about "Ancient and ModemUses of Taro" on August 6. There is asmall fee for attending these lecturesand additional information can be ob­tainedbycontactingFriendsofHe'eiaat247-3156duringregularbusinesshours.

this 9am-til-Iate afternoon affair. CallWCC at 235-7433 or Friends of Taro at262-Q981 for more information

WHAT'SUP

"White Taro" an UpdateBy now most of you have heard

about the interest in what we are call­ing "White Taro." Basically, these arevarietiesof taro (suchas ManaLauloa,Pololu, and Haokea-which are not incommercial production in Hawaii)whenconvertedto flourand thenagainto products they stay primarilywhite.Is white taro really that important?Well for certain markets it definitelyis, for others it may not be. For in­stance, if you were to make all-taropasta from poi taros, the productwouldbe brownor purple-howmanyof you would be attracted to a purplenoodle?

In the mean time, there has beentalk that the farm gate price of suchwhite taros would be equal to that ofpoi or Chinese taro. Unfortunately,we do not know where this rumorstarted, but let us demonstrate theproblem with that thinking. Taro isabout80% waterand 20%solid. Thuswhenyou take out all the water out of5 pounds of taro at $.40/lb(5x$.40=$2.oo at the farm gate) youpotently have 1 pound of solid taro totum to flour. That startingone poundof product is now valued at $2.00 be­fore any other money is spent on pro­cessing into flour or a finished prod­uct. While we can'tsay whatan actualfarm gate price might be, it is safe tosay it will be well below $.40/Ib.

Anyway, the College is still in theproduct formulation stage and thereis still interest inbuyingproducts, butmuch work is still to be done-we'llkeepyou informed. Take heart, whilewhite taro may not be your cup of teafromaneconomicstand point, there isstill room for expansionof the poiandChinese taro, and luau leaf marketsfor those who plan before they plant.P.S. We stilldo notknow which varietyofthe white taros is best for making prod­ucts.

Dryland Taro Mechanical Harvest­ing Machine Arrives

Thanksto thefinancial supportofthe GACC, the College has had amechanical dryland taro harvesterbuilt for demonstration purposes.While the machine is basically like apotato harvester, it does sporta longerchain so that more dirt will fall offduringharvestinganda slideon-and­off harvest basket. This machine willbe demonstrated in the near future-­we'll letyouknow whenvia thenews­paper and the Tattler. Call extensionagent Alton Arakaki on Molokai formore information (567-9833).

1991 Tops for Taro ProductionAs expected, 1991 was a banner

year for taro producers. The HawaiiAgricultural Statistics Service's(HASS) January 23rd report (get acopy by calling 973-9588 on Oahu)notes that taro production output re­bounded to a 13 year high-CON­GRATULATIONS! Unfortunately,whatdidn'tget reported in that nicelyproduced 4-page report was that luauleaf sales (SEEBelow) havealso grown

Windward Community College'sAnnual Taro Festival

On Saturday August 15, 1992,Windward Community College, theFriends of Taro and other supportinggroups are going to hold their 4th tarofestival. The college is located in Wind­ward Oahu near the comerof LikeLikeandKahekeliHwys. Theeventhasbeenwell received over the past three yearsand it promises to be even better thisyear. Weencourageall to come. Peoplewhohave taro relatedproductsto sellorshow can callabout getting a booth for

Luau Leaf. Ship and Plane Arrivals from All Sources andWholesaler's Truck Receipts from Oahu

160

140'Ca- 120

100:. 80

0- 60

8 40..; 20

o

Year

2 The Taro Tattler VOL. 4, NO.1 Jan.-May 1992

in the past few years. While HASSisunable to report this data for theHawaii luau leaf market due to con­fidentiality restrictions, anotherbranchof the DepartmentofAgricul­ture, USDA Agricultural MarketingService, does keeps tabs on Oahu'staro leaf market-hey, at least you getthe idea! Note, in the figure below,that the past few years has shown anupswing in luau leafsales. In fact,wereceive calls from luau leaf buyersperiodically and they would like tohear from dependable luau leaf farm­ers. While these processors mayormay not be able to buy from you atthe moment, it never hurts to planand make contacts!

Chinese Taro Brochure FinishedThe long awaited sales brochure

forChinese taro has been completed.This 81 /2"x14"4-fold,4-eolorglossybrochure, a joint project of the De­partment of Agriculture, Market De­velopment Division and the College,will give some help to those of youwho need some help in movingyourQUALITY Chinese taro. The bro­chure is written in English, Chineseand Vietnamese, the latter two arethelanguagesofyourmainbuyers. Itprovides information on nutrition,storage, handling, and display. Onthe back there is room for you tostampthe nameofyour farm or com­pany. It also providesrecipes for taroand taro leaf so that new consumersare attracted to your product.

We ask that you make sure thatyousellahighQUAUlYproductwiththis brochure and that you keep yourfellowfarmersdoingthe same,afterall,there isnothing worse thana beautifulmarketing device trying to pass off apoorquality product Wealsoask thatyoudo notputthebrochuresin thetarobags themselves,rather, include themin a sturdy box in the shipping con­taineror send them ahead of the ship­ment. You can get copies of the bro­chure by sending a self addressedstamped envelope to: Chinese TaroBrochure, Department of Agriculture,Market Development Division, P.O.Box22159, Honolulu, HI 96823-2159.

The College and OOA would like tothank the35peoplewlwhelpedusmake thisconcept areality.

WHAT'S THEMATIER, SNAILGOTYOUR TARO?

As many of you are now aware,"Applesnails"haverecentlymovedfrombeing pets in household fish tanks tobeing pests in commercialwetland taropatches. (Actually,many relatedspecieshavebeenhereforyearstheyjustweren'tamajorproblemuntilrecently). Thoseofyou who harvest the snails to sell torestaurants may not think they are thatbig a problem, but remember mostpatchesareconnectedby the sarnewatersystem. In thiscase,what isgood foronefarmer is not good for another.

Amulti-agencytaskforceheadedbythe Department of Agriculture and in­cluding the Department of Land andNatural Resources, the CollegeofTropi­cal Agricultureand Human Resources,and others are now looking into fourpossible ways of controlling this pesthand collection ofsnailsand eggs;appli­cation of copper sulfate; application ofsalt water, and heat solarization of lo'iwith plasticcovers. Note: currently testsarebeingconductedoncoppersulfate,BUTitis NOT registered for use on taro at themoment, soitisillegal touse itinyourTXJtch.Thisgroupneedsyourhelpandcoopera­tion,rememberwe arein thistogether! Ifyou would like further information onthe snailproblem callBobBoeschat theDOA on Oahu at (973-9401).

AlsoMr.ChrisAlpha ofthe Depart­ment of Botanyat the UH is doing hisgraduate work in this area and wouldlike to work with some farmers on thisproblem.PleasecontactChrisat:Depart­mentofBotany,3190MaileWay,Univer­sityofHawaii,Honolulu,HI 96822,(BOO)956-8369.

SOURCES AND RESOURCES

The Good Doctor is inDr.TenyShintani,thehardworking,

good doctorofwiseand healthfuleatingand author of the Waianae Diet,hasre­centlypublisheda bookabout that latterendeavor: the Waianae Book ofHawaiianHealth. The book discussesthe value ofeatingtraditionallocal foods, suchas taro.It sells for about $8.00 and the moneycollectedgoes tosupportingtheWaianaeDietProgram-Agreatcause! Checkwithyou localbookstore.

Read All About It!CTAHRreceivesandputsoutsome

50newsletters on Agricultureand Hu­man Resourcestopics,such as the TaroTattler. Some of these may help youdiversifyyour cropsand improveyourlife at home and on the farm, help youget connected to better markets andother growers, and keepyou informedabout legislation, trends,programs andnew technologies which might affectyou as a farmer. Here are a fewtitlestopiqueyourinterest: HawaiiFarm BureauNewsletter; Hawaiian Home Lunds Agri­cultural News; Aloha Avocado;CutFlowerNews; Hawaii Food Manufacturers Asso­dation Newsletter; Hawaii Food Technol­ogyNews;Hawaii Herb AssociationNews­letter,Family Economics;GACC-Up-Date;Hawaii Agricultural Alliance Newsletter;Hawaii Mac Facts; The Pesticide Label;Hawaii Tropical Fruit Bulletin;Flower andVegetable News; Hila Vegetable GrowerNews; Maui Vegetable Notes; The KulaDisease/Insect Watch Newsletter, and Veg­etableGrowersNewsletter. WriteusattheTattlerfor a complete list!

More On Newsletterslast issue we talked about paying

attentionto environmentalnews to pre­dictopenmgsforyourproduce inMain­land markets.Productsheetsput outbysuch companiesas Oahu's StrawbenyConnectionofHawaii(fruit&vegetablebuyersanddistributors)orFreidaofCali­fomia, indicate the status of fruit andvegetablesuppliesover the currentsea­sonand expectedshortagesforthecom­ing year. Your buyers or distnbutorsshould know this stuff. If they're nottellingyouaboutwhattheyneed, thenit'sup toyou tobe informed. Another,not soobvious place to look for this kind ofinformationis Food Manufacturer'sorRestaurant newsletters or magazines,such as the Nation's Restaurant News.Why here? Ifa chefor foodmanager inthehotelbusinessseesashortagecomingup for a particularfruitor vegetable, hemaychangehisseasonalmenusaccord­ingly. Thereare a lotof restaurantsandhotelsout there betweenhere and Cali­forniaand thatcan mean a sizableshareofbusinessforsome. Whilethismaynotapply so stronglyto taro farmers, it willforyou fanners who are growingotherproduce alongwith your taro.

3 TheTaro Tattler VOL. 4, NO.1 Jan.-May 1992

49.2%10.19.16.2

74.6

thenthe 1992Export Directory& Buy­ers Guide is the book for you. The 54page directory is divided by prod­ucts and gives a complete listing ofcommodity by company. If youwould like a copy or would like to be

How to Conduct a Tasting EventHow do you expect people to

buy your product if they have nevertasted it? Good question--easy an­swer. Hold a "tasting"-those littlemini--events that you have partici­pated in at the grocery store. To getmore information on how to put onetogether write toSmallFarm Center,University of California, Davis, CA95616-8699 or call 916-757-8910 andask for their brochure on Taste Test­ing.

1992 Directory of Native Hawai­ian-Owned Businesses and 1992Export Directory & Buyers Guide

Yes, they are finally out! TheNative Hawaiian Business Directoryassembled by aHA and Alu Like,has some 500Hawaiian-ownedbusi­nesses listed including about 5 taroand poi companies. Get a copy bycontacting the sponsoring organiza­tions on your island or by writingaHA, Economic Development Di­vision,711 KapiolaniBlvd.,Suite500,Honolulu, HI 96813, and get an ap­plication to get into the next issue ofthe directory!

Ifyou are an exporter of HawaiiAgricultural Produce and Products

3,037625560380

4,6027,148

Summary Budget for Typical One Acre Taro Growing Operation 1989Valueor %of

Cost Total Cost$11 ,7501)GrossReceipts

2) Variable Costs:LaborMachinery & EquipmentMaterialsInterest on operating Exps.TOTALVariable Costs

3) Inaome OverVAR Costs4) FixedCosts:

Machinery & Equipment 777 12.6Building 72 1.2Land 424 6.9FarmOverhead 300 4.9TOTALFixedCosts 1,573 25.5

5)TOTALCosts 6,175 100.0Source: Leung& Sato, from Taking Taro intothe 1990's, CTAHR, 1990.

tional costs such as the ones listedAbove. If you would like to knowmore about your cost of production,then take advantage of this greatopportunity, call Kent in Kona at322-2718.

Melbourne, Florida 32902. Theyhave an extensive list of back issueswhich highlight a lot of the cropspeople are just getting interested inhere and ones we've been growingfor years. These include: Persim­mon; Passion Fruit; Loquat; [aboti­caba; Poha Berry and Belembe(Xanthosoma brasiliensis-Tahitiantaro which the author first tasted onthe BigIslandl), among others. Youmight also want to check out thenewsletter editor's (Franklin Mar­tin) book Edible Leaves of theTropics(1975) where he discusses all typesof good stuff including the use oftaro leaf.

Getting a Handle on Your Cost ofTaro Production

For the past 3 years we havebeen trying to get taro farmers, likeyourself, to get a handle on their costofproduction-see tablebelow. Well,help has arrived in the form of Dr.Kent Fleming, an AgriculturalEconomist attached to the BigIslandCooperativeExtensionService. Kenthas agreed to work with taro (andother vegetable) farmers (on any is­land), who are willing do somehomework and keep track of opera-

PQpular Specialties pQpular Herbs1. jicama basil2. dried tomatoes thyme3. elephantgarlic cilantro4. squash rosemary5. fresh herbs parsley6. shallots mint7. pearl onions tarragon8. fresh chili peppers dill9. black-eyed peas oregano10.oriental stir fry vegs. chivesSource: Packer, July 20, 1991 & Cal.Agr., Feb. 1991.

Diversity is the Spice of LifeTo protect your crops from pest

build-up and to protect your profitmarginfrom erosionyou might wantto look into diversifying your cropline. Here are two tables which mayhelp you decide on a crop to investi­gate further. (Of course, some ofthese may be impossible to growhere or difficult to export. For theones that can be grown, you mightwant to put some effort into work­ing with a local chef to move a littleproduct-can't hurt to askl)

The Subtropical NewsletterLivingoff the Land, is an old es­

tablished newsletter (18 years inprint) which deals with growingplants in sub-tropical climates (wehave some ofthose here). Youmightwant to get subscription tothis news­letter for$14.84by writingto: Livingoff the Land, P.O. Box 2131,

Voice of Hawaii in LAEver wonder how Hawaii folks

who live on the Mainland get infor­mation about happenings here inthe Islands? Well, one way is theVoice ofHawaii a newsletter which ispublishedin California. BobbyChunis the publisher of this neat littlemonthly which contains informationabout happenings (like on luaus­target market and marketing toolanyone?) both here and there. Thenewsletter reaches thousands offormer Island families all across theUS and provides a great outlet foradvertisingand sellingyour taro andtaro-based products on the Main­land. For more information write:Voiceof Hawaii, P.O. Box26511, LosAngeles, CA 90026-0511. P.5. Thesubscription price is $10.00 for 12issues.

4 The Taro Tattler VOL. 4, NO.1 [an.-May 1992

"." A. . \'-' ,"-VU.l .:x.:: • .:tLI.I..I.lC U.l I laln.l/ . VVIIlJ rtlr- VVIIIIIIV .111 1' I

TOP20USCITIES WITH ASIAN (A) OR PACIFIC (P)ISLANDERS

in next year's book write to: Depart­ment of Agriculture, Market Devel­opment Division, P.O. Box 22159,Honolulu, HI 96823-2159.

Where to View TaroLooking for a place to spend a

quite afternoon looking at taros or aplace where you can take yourclass?Well then, read on. The Kauai Agri­culture Experiment Station, Kapa'a,Kauai has probably one of the bestcollectionsoftaro species in the Stateof Hawaii. However, there are oth­ers around the state where you canfind taro, as well as knowledgeablepeople to tell you about the dozensof varieties present in Hawaii. Hereare the major collections: on Oahu­the Lyon Arboretum located inManoa Valley (988-3177) andKanewai Cultural Garden at theUniversity of Hawaii (956-6825),Manoa campus; on Kauai-KauaiAgriculture Experiment Station inKapa'a (822-4984) and the NationalTropical Botanical Garden in Lawai(332-7324); on Maui-the KeanaeTropical Garden in Keanae (248­8592),and on the BigIsland-theAmyGreenwell Gardens, Captain Cook,Hawaii (323-3318). Some ofthese gar­dens relyonhelpfrom volunteers tokeeptheir taro patches looking nice, if youhavea littleextra timeto donate pleasegive these groups a call.

more information on exporting, es­pecially the quarantine regulations.

More ON THE BOOK­SHELF, HARDDISK

and VCR

La 'au Hawaii: Traditional Uses ofPlants

UH Botany Professor IsabellaAbbott has recently released a bookon traditional uses of Hawaii plants,including taro. This beautiful book,published by Bishop Museum Press,sells for $22.95 and is 163 pages. Seeyour localbookstorefor a copy or callthe Bishop museum (847-3511) forordering information.

Permaculture: A Practical Guide fora Sustainable Future

Ever wonder how you can growtaro and other related items with amore natural integrated productionapproach (sort of like GeorgeKahurnoku'spig/taro combination)?Well then Permaculture: A PracticalGuide for a Sustainable Future may bethe book you are looking for. In factthe author, Bill Mollison, writes inhis article on taro and aquaculturethat Chuck and Tina Busby and Irnuand Rachel Naki from Molokai, and

BigIslanderRichard Waller were ofgreat help in putting together thisinformative section. The book is579 pagesand was putoutby IslandPress (1-800-828-1302) in 1990.

Chemical-Free Yard & GardenTrying to keep your customers

satisfied with organically growntaro, but some critters are eatingyour profits alive? Well then youmightwant toget Chemical-Free Yard& Garden, Rodale Press's book onnatural pest control. The hardbound edition of this book is about$27. Write the good people at Rodale(they are also the people that putout Organic Gardening Magazine)at: Rodale Books, Emmaus, PA18098, for ordering information.

CT AHR Releases Videos onHawaii Plant Production

Prolific CTAHR video maker,Doug Hamasaki, was kind enough topointout that therearesomeplant vid­eos which have been available for awhile, and some new ones which arejust comingout. Dougis tryingto getthese videosin Statelibraries, but saysitwilltakesometimeto duplicate them.TheWongAudioVisual CenteratUH'sSinclairLibrary will have them soon.

So You Want to Be an ExporterIf you are interested in export­

ing taro (or another Asian and Pa­cific Island crop), or would like toexpand your existing export busi­ness you may want to look at thetable to the RIGHT. This data comesfrom the recently completed 1990USCensus. These markets may holdthe key to substantial expansion formany of Hawaii's unique products.How to start getting into a specificmarket place? Go to your nearestlibrary and ask for a yellow pages ofthe city in question. Then look un­der Fruit and Vegetables or some­thing similar, and finish with a fewphone calls to perspective clients. Ifthey agree to look at your productsend them a few FREEsamples. Callthe Department of Agriculture for

CITY STATE TOTAL POP. AJPPOP. %TOT.POP.1. NewYork NY 7,322,564 512,719 7.02. LosAngeles CA 3,485,398 341,807 9.83. Honolulu HI 365,272 257,552 70.54. San Francisco CA 723,959 210,876 29.15. SanJose CA 782,248 152,815 19.56. SanDiego CA 1,110,549 130,945 11.87. Chicago IL 2,783,726 104,118 3.78. Houston TX 1,630,553 67,113 4.19. Seattle WA 516,259 60,819 11.810. Long Beach CA 429,433 58,266 13.611. Sacramento CA 369,365 55,426 15.012. Oakland CA 372,242 54,931 14.813. Stockton CA 210,943 48,087 22.814. Fresno CA 354,202 44,358 12.515. Philadelphia PA 1,585,586 43,522 2.716. Daly City CA 92,311 40,466 43.817. Monterey Park CA 60,738 34,898 57.518. Fremont CA 173,339 33,671 19.419. Alhambra CA 82,106 31,313 38.120. Boston MA 574,283 30,388 5.3

Source: 1990U.S. Census.

5 The TaroTattler VOL. 4, NO.1 Jan.-May 1992

The videos include: Strategies for An­thurium Blight Control; Thrips..A Di­lemma for -Hawaii's Dendrobium In­dustry; andCommon ProblemsofMac­adamia in Hawaii. Other videos willfollow including these taro conferences:Taking Taro into the 1990's; TheMoloka'iTaroConference;WhiteTaro,Another Opportunity: Allergen-freeFood Productsfrom Hawaii.

These classics will also join thefollowing videos on taro which havebeen shot by various people and whichcan be found in the Wong Center: Sum­merIsland Style; Ke Kalo;Remember­ing George Helm. Twelve other tarorelated videos are also available.

Why are we talking about othercrops in this newsletter? Because it'sgood to be well "videoed," and becauseyou should be diversifying your cropline and these may just help you out.Call Doug at 956-2164 for more infor­mation.

JUST A THOUGHT

The Hawaii market is multi-lingualand multi-cultural , but our advertisingmedia is usually not This is unfortunate,

as the tourist industry for instance, bringsus a lot of visitors who don't understandthe English language well enough to dis­tinguish between a lot of snack foodproducts. Do they know the differencebetween a potato chip and our delicioustaro chips for instance? We think this isworth a little attention. However , insteadof spending a lot ofmoney on a Japaneselanguage bag for your chips, for example,here's an idea that will work for anylanguage (including Hispanic and South­east Asian markets in California). Add asticker to yourproduct, in theappropriatelanguage (in bright colors to attract atten­tion), that tellspotentialcustomers what's

. in the bag and how good your product is(Taro chips-Absolutely delicious!). Tellyour buyers to put your chips with thesetags right up front at the counters inWaikiki! And remember if people cannot buy your products easily here, howto you expect them to be repeat buyerswhen they return home?

A TWO-WAV STREET

DearReaders: Newsletters and com­munication is a two-way street. While itis important to us to provide you with

current and interesting information aboutyour industry, at the same time we alsoneed your input. Please take a few mo­ments today todrop us a note to tell us howwe are doing and what other informationyou would like us to collect. We alsoencourage you to write a small articleabout your connection with taro.

AND THIS JUST IN...

The College and the Maui CountyOffice of Economic Development aresponsoring, Pulling Through the 90's, asmall business management conferencefor Maui County Businesses. The pro­gram is scheduled for Friday, July 10thfrom 7:30am-12:30pm. Call LynnNakamura-Tengan on Maui at 244-3242for more information.

Also, give your taro fields a breakwith crop rotation. See how at the 2ndAnnualDemonstration andDiscussion ofLiving Sods on Vegetable Crops. Veg­etable extension specialist, HectorValenzuelawill co-host this event on May15, 1992 in Waianae, Oahu. Call JoeDeFrank , the other host, at the College at956-8050.

IN THIS ISSUE OF

The Taro Tattler.:. New Taro Products Launched.:. Community Events Abound.:. Asian and Pacific Islander Markets Identified.:. More Marketing Ideas

For more information please contact:The Taro ProjectDepartment of Agricultural & Resource EconomicsGilmore Hall 115University of HawaiiHonolulu, HI 96822Attn: Jim Hellyer, editorPhone: (808)956-8800 Fax: (808)956-2811

Reference to a company or product name does not implyapproval or recommendation of the product by the College ofTropical Agriculture and Human Resources, University ofHawaii.

@Printed onrecycleable paper

~~

TO:

6

The Taro ProjectDeparlment of Agricultural & Resource EconomicsGilmore Hall 115Univer sity of HawaiiHonolulu, HI 96822Attn: Jim Hellyer, editor

The Taro Tattler VOL. 4, NO.1 [an-May 1992