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Hawaii Ag-Tourism News

Philadelphia Flower Show 

Big things are happening for Ag-Tourism at this very moment. Did you hear about the largest flower show in North America happening right now in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania? Its the Philadelphia Flower Show and the theme is Hawaii.

The Maui Visitor’s Bureau arranged for over a dozen booths to share the Aloha to an expected 300,000 visitors over nine days at this huge event. Our Dania Katz of Edible Hawaiian Islands is there to advise our Maui participants with expert knowledge from previous shows. See the web-site for the full list of participants including the Maui Coffee Association, Hawaii Island Visitor’s Bureau, Oahu and Kauai Visitor’s Bureau.   Melanie Boudar, the Sweet Paradise Chocolatier is there and Chocolates are flying off the shelves!

Love this picture of Melanie at The Philadelphia Flower Show and hey that’s my T-shirt design lower left of photo. 😉

Imagine nine days of this exposure for Hawaii. Our proud flower growers are there from Kauai, Oahu, Maui and the Big Island. I’ve seen photos of thousands of our unique Proteas and tropical flowers being shared with the world. I’m sure the show will inspire many visitors to plan their trips to the flower farms in the Hawaiian Islands.

HATA

Wednesday, March 7, 2012 HATA (Hawaii Ag-Tourism Association) meets via tele-conference Poly-com on all islands at ten AM to discuss the future of Ag-Tourism in Hawaii. Topics will include Governmental affairs/Update on Ag-Tourism Ordinance on Hawaii Island, How the legal process is going to be permitted to offer Ag-Tourism, membership, marketing, funding, finance and Education. I’ll be there at Maui Community College to contribute what I’ve learned over the past year about creating Maui Country Farm Tours and learn from the experience of Lani Weigert, Charlene Kauhane and farmers from outer islands.

See you on TV, Lani for the HATA teleconference Wednesday March 7, 2012

Up-Country Photo Farm Tour

Up-Country photo Farm Tour at Maui's WineryWe recently did a very personalized tour for guests on Maui and Lynn Erfer (senior marketing director) of the Maui Visitor’s Bureau was along for the ride. We had a blast. The cruise ship passengers were farmers from Illinois and what did they want to see? Farms on Maui. Now these were big farmers of 1200 and 3500 acres of corn and soybeans, yet they were thrilled with our Surfing Goat Dairy, Ulupalakua Ranch, Maui’s Winery, Ali`i Kula Lavender Farm and learning about the sugar cane on Maui. When Lynn asked if we could pull over on Omaopio Road for a photo opportunity, the first thing our farmer did was to scoop up some of our red dirt. He wanted to feel the soil. His wife laughed and said she was surprised he didn’t taste it. (At Surfing Goat Dairy he did chew on alfalfa)

They loved the little back road journey that Rick surprises us with and stories of his Portuguese family in Kula and Hali`i Maile, Maui.

As an added treat we stopped by the Hui No`eau Visual Arts Center to check out Maui Open Studios and had the pleasure of introducing Toby Neal author of Blood Orchids. Lynn is an art enthusiast and was so excited to stop at the Hui.

Carolyn Quan, the creator of Maui Open Studios was here too! Her art was displayed in the beautiful solarium.

Maui Ag-Festival
Next up is the Annual Maui Ag-festival coming April 7, 2012 to the Maui Tropical Plantation.
Follow Maui County Farm Bureau for the Grown on Maui Chef Series and Slow Food Maui for the Taste Education Series.
Sharing Maui's Agricultural Beauty
Ka`anapali Fresh

There’s a big event in the works for Ka`anapali that involves farmers, chefs and all the hotels in Ka`anapali, Maui. I met with executive director Shelley Kekuna of Kaanapali Resorts and event planner Toni Rojas “Sterling Performance” who are putting together a three day event for Labor Day Weekend bringing Ag-Tourism to delight everyone with an in-depth experience getting to know the land of Maui.

There will be Chef tastings at several resorts, classes, tours of farms, entertainment of course, a three day series with choices for everyone that truly celebrates the food and farms of Maui. Just minutes above the sea are many cottage farms abundant with coffee, fruits, nuts, vegetables and added-value products which are the future of Hawaii. Friday August 31, September 1 & 2

 

See you at the Farms… Call me anytime for more info and tour ideas. We’ll personalize a day for you in the country.

~ Marilyn 808 283-9131