Category Archives: Blog

Michelle Galimba & What Truth Tastes Like

Richard Ha writes:

Michelle Galimba is a rancher (at her family’s Kuahiwi Ranch, in Na‘alehu) and a member of the Board of Agriculture.

One day, on a plane, I looked across the aisle and saw her reading a newspaper. I did a doubletake when I realized the newspaper was in Chinese.

Michelle is a rancher with a PhD in comparative literature from U.C. Berkeley who knows Chinese. She’s a very interesting, gifted, thinking person. You can click into her blog Ehulepo on the right side of this blog anytime. It’s worth reading.

Here’s an article she wrote at the She Grows Food blog called What Does Truth Taste Like.

What does truth taste like? What does justice taste like?

These might sound like terribly pompous questions to ask. But they are worth asking as we learn, un-learn, re-learn the question: “What is food?”

What is food?

Food – we speak of it as good or bad, as healthy or indulgent, pretty or ugly, tasty or yucky, clever or boring,strange or familiar, pure or tainted.

What is it that we eat? It was there before each of us, like the air we breathe, and yet more complexly given to us by each other – cultural, social, ecological. It is what we have absorbed already before we became conscious; it is what we are formed from. It is what our first thoughts were bent upon, what our bodies cried out for before there were words. Food is a feeling, an interchange with the world, a necessary blessing.

Food can be beautiful and good. It should be so. Because it is the flower of the entirety of our knowledge, because it is the will of the community to nourish and sustain, to embody itself, animate itself. Because it is the form and medium of our conversation with the web of life, in which humans are but one node.

The pathway of food should be known by all – its path from earth to belly and back to earth. What knowledge is more necessary?

Truth might have a taste. Would we know it when we tasted it? …

Read the rest

Huffington & Omidyar Visit Hamakua Springs

By Leslie Lang, blog editor

Thursday was such an interesting day. Arianna Huffington of the Huffington Post, and Pierre Omidyar, founder of Honolulu’s online newspaper Civil Beat (and founder of eBay), spent some time at Hamakua Springs Country Farms.

The background is that Huffington Post and Civil Beat have teamed up to start HuffPost Hawaii (and they asked Richard to blog for the new online news organization. Here’s his first HuffPost Hawaii post, by the way.)

So this week, Arianna and Pierre were making the rounds in Hawai‘i for the big HuffPost Hawaii launch. They spent Thursday on the Big Island, where they were welcomed with a big reception at ‘Imiloa Astronomy Center.

The only other Big Island stop they made was to Richard’s farm. They had asked if they could come and meet Richard and learn about what he’s doing. So that happened Thursday afternoon, and Richard invited me to join them there.

What a completely fascinating day. There’s something about being around really smart people who are doing big and really interesting things, making things happen and making a difference. Richard is completely like that, too, as you know if you’ve been reading this blog. It’s invigorating to be around that kind of energy.

Both Arianna and Pierre are very friendly and down-to-earth, and both are interested in issues of sustainability and what Richard is doing.

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Richard told them about his background — flunking out of college the first time around and ending up in Vietnam, coming back and trading manure from his father’s chicken farm for bananas to start what eventually became Hamakua Springs Country Farms — about seeing prices start rising, rising, rising and wondering why; about attending five Peak Oil conferences and starting to learn what was happening. He talked about how he forces the changes needed to get to where he needs to be five or 10 years in the future.

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He talked about the current threat to Big Island farming from anti-GMO bills, and Pierre asked some very salient (and polite) questions about some common GMO fears, such as of:

  • Commercial control of seeds. Richard replied that in many cases, such as with, for instance, the Rainbow papaya, virus-resistant seeds are developed by the university and not controlled by any big business at all. This, he said, is often the case.
  • Cross-pollination, or “pollen drift.” Richard responded that due to numerous studies, we know how much drift there is for different crops. Farmers work together, he says, to plan what is planted where, plant so many lines of “guard rows” and it’s completely manageable.

They asked about Richard’s new hydroelectric system, and we took a dusty, bumpy country road drive out to see where the water runs through an old sugar cane flume, and then through a turbine.

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Arianna and Pierre were very interested in this, and in how, when the switch is thrown very shortly, the farm will be saving perhaps almost half of its monthly electric bill, which now averages $10-11,000.

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Pierre asked about returning excess power to the utility, and was shocked to learn that due to a technicality, Richard will not be paid for the power he feeds to HELCO. Pierre kept returning to that and said, more than once, “That’s just not right.” Richard finally replied, “Well, at least it’s not wasted.”

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Richard Ha, Arianna Huffington, Pierre Omidyar, Leslie Lang, June Ha

Richard talked about how they have converted the farm from growing mostly bananas to being a family of farms, which brings in local farmers who then have a close-to-home place to farm. This, in turn, means the farm produces a more diverse crop.

He told Arianna and Pierre about growing their current experiment growing tilapia, to learn how to add a protein component to the food they produce and also use the waste as fertilizer. Workers can fish for tilapia there and take some home for their families.

Arianna and Pierre both seemed sincerely interested. They paid close attention and asked good questions.

Richard told them about talking with Kumu Lehua Veincent, who was principal of Keaukaha Elementary School back in the early days of the Thirty Meter Telescope (TMT) push. He told them that he asked Kumu Lehua, “What if we ask the TMT for five, full-ride scholarships to the best schools in the nation for your best students?” He told them that Kumu Lehua thought about it for a minute and then quietly asked, “And what about the rest?”

This was a turning point, explained Richard, who said that at the time he could feel his ears turning red. He told Arianna and Pierre that that phrase, What about the rest? gives him an “unfailing moral compass.”

It always brings him back to the rubbah slippah folk, he told them. The “rubbah slippah” folk are in contrast to the “shiny shoes” folk. When he explained this, Pierre looked down at his own shoes.

“I wore my shiny shoes today,” he said, “but I meant to change into my sneakers before coming to the farm.” He mentioned his shiny shoes a couple more times during the visit.

“I felt they absolutely got what I meant when I advocated for the ‘rubbah slippah’ folks,” Richard told me, “and completely support that idea.”

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Richard’s daughter Tracy had laid out a beautiful spread of Hamakua Springs produce back by the office, where there was a tent set up, and Arianna zeroed in on the longan.

“What’s this?” she said, and Tracy explained that it’s a delicious fruit. She handed one to Arianna, along with some wipes (they are juicy and messy), and Arianna loved it.

Arianna gives the impression of being very family-oriented. “At what point did you and June get married in this long process?” she asked, when Richard was explaining how he got started farming 35 years ago. (The answer: 32 years ago, and when June joined the family she took all the farm receipts out of a big banana box and straightened out the accounting.) Arianna asked Tracy if she had siblings. When she was introduced to Richard’s grandson Kapono, she looked at him, and at his parents, and asked, “Now, are you Tracy and Kimo’s son?” (Yes.)

She gave June a copy of her book, On Becoming Fearless.

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Both Arianna and Pierre are such interesting people. One of the things Richard talks about is forcing change, and that is something that both his guests are all about, too: Looking down the road and fixing things, forcing the change instead of letting things bumble along.

It is refreshing to be in the presence of such interesting thinkers and doers. Great day.

This is a video Civil Beat did with Richard recently, before Arianna and Pierre’s visit. It’s really nicely done and you get to hear a bit about some of the topics they discussed yesterday (while seeing gorgeous views of the farm).

Arianna Huffington & Pierre Omidyar Coming to Farm; New Blog

Richard Ha writes:

Have you heard that Huffington Post and Honolulu Civil Beat are partnering up to launch a new online site called HuffPost Hawaii?

As part of next month’s launch, Arianna Huffington and Pierre Omidyar are coming to the Big Island, and they have asked to visit the farm to learn more about the nexus of energy and agriculture here in Hawai‘i.

They have also asked me to write a HuffPost Hawaii blog, starting during their launch week. I’ll link to that here when it’s available.

We are in such a unique position here in Hawai‘i, with our own set of energy issues, limitations and resources and how all that relates to our situation in terms of sustainability (being able to produce what we need here, vs. being dependent, for example, as we are, on 85 percent of our food being transported here from the U.S. mainland) and food security (being able to get adequate and sufficient food, regardless of where it comes from).

Both Arianna and Pierre’s farm visit, and our HuffPost Hawaii blog, will be great in terms of helping show how Hawai‘i fits into the big picture of energy and agriculture.

They are also great opportunities to continue our GMO discussion and to discuss other sustainability practices.

We might have a lot to gain once HuffPost Hawaii starts up. We will have additional, knowledgeable, people in Hawai‘i, as well as worldwide, reading about our energy/ag situations here and possibly helping us make informed decisions as we chart our course.

What an exciting venture this HuffPost Hawaii is.

HuffPost Hawaii Is Coming Soon!

Posted: 05/29/2013 12:07 pm EDT  |  Updated: 05/29/2013 2:16 pm EDT

NEW YORK CITY AND HONOLULU – May 29, 2013 – The Huffington Post and Honolulu Civil Beat today announced a partnership to create HuffPost Hawaii, a site that will bring together the resources of The Huffington Post and CivilBeat.com. The new site, expected to launch this fall, will give a global audience access to the wonders of one of the world’s most famous destinations and the authentic community of Hawaii, including its Aloha spirit. The site will explore Hawaii as an oasis for unplugging and recharging. It will also offer Hawaii residents local news and perspectives, along with Pulitzer Prize-winning national and international coverage…. Read the rest

Locavore Nation

I had a look at a University of Hawai‘i College of Tropical Agriculture blog the other day. It’s called Sustainable Agriculture, and the post Locavore Nation, Slow Food and the Importance of Agriculture in the Aloha State really caught my eye.

First some background: Remember Lynne Rossetto Kasper, host of the American Public Radio program The Splendid Table? She came to Hawai‘i last spring and gave a three-hour master class, Tomato 101, at Kapi‘olani Community College. And then she, along with the 100 professional chefs and culinary students in attendance, had a tomato tasting and Hamakua Springs won! It was very exciting.

From the Sustainable Agriculture blog:

American Public Media’s PBS radio program, The Splendid Table, which by the way, is the recipient of the 2008 James Beard Award for best radio food program, is sponsoring Locavore Nation, which features 15 bloggers from across the mainland writing about their experiences for one year as they they try to get 80 percent of their food from local, organic, seasonal sources and then to incorporate it into tasty, healthy meals.  It’s a good time to be starting such a project, in fact one of the recent posts says it a  “Great time to be a locavore!”  Check back from time to time to see how they are doing, especially after the first frost sets in.

It’s blogging gone wild. Fun. It also sounds kind of tricky, but I still wish they’d asked me.

Of Two Minds: China & the U.S.

Today’s post on the blog Of Two Minds, titled Olympic Ponderings, was about China and it was interesting and insightful.

“Anyone who watched the pageantry of the Olympic Game’s opening ceremony in Beijing knows it is unlikely to be topped in our lifetimes.

My wife offered this analogy: the previous Olympics were like county fairs, while Beijing was a full Hollywood production.

“As someone who began formally studying Chinese culture, history and philosophy in 1973 (i.e. beginning in university, including several graduate-level courses), I was struck by the depth of the opening ceremony’s many levels of representation and allusions.

“I was especially impressed with the lavish references to the Tang Dynasty and the voyages of Admiral Zheng He. As the NBC commentator pointed out, these two periods of Chinese history were marked by a remarkable openness to the world and a stupendous exchange of goods and ideas.”

 Charles Hugh Smith is very upbeat about America’s openness and ability to grow because of its openness and ability to welcome people. At the end of his post, he even uses the Big Island as a reference. Take a look.

Hilo Living

I just knew that Hilo would soon be discovered by discerning people who value quality of life. This blog is the first, real-life proof that confirms my suspicions.

It lays out the thought processes of a former Silicon Valley citizen who moved to Hilo four months ago.

This person made a conscious decision to move where he can improve his quality of life in the face of world turmoil, caused by world oil supplies not keeping up with demand.

He chose Hilo.

Hilo is much more special than a lot of us realize. I read this person’s previous blog posts, too, and it was so reaffirming that we do, indeed, live in the most special place on earth.

I am very optimistic for our future.  I notice that Café Pesto and Hilo Bay Café are full of people from away. I believe more and more people will discover Hilo. And they will bring in outside money.

I came to the same conclusion when I was in Houston last September, at the Association for the Study of Peak Oil.

I was the only one wearing shorts. I did not have the heart to tell the people I met that I was going to wear shorts right through the winter. I did not have the heart to tell them we would grow food all winter long.

And when I got off the plane in Hilo, I knew – just like the person who wrote this blog – that Hilo, Hawai‘i is the best place in the world to ride out this new period in human history. We just need to take care of each other.

Two Tidbits Today (say THAT three times fast!)

1) Since we started this blog back in May, more than one person has asked me about how one starts and maintains a company blog.

Now I am pleased to be able to point you to an excellent article at work.com called Marketing Your Business With a Blog. And not only did Brian Brown put together this great information on how to start a company blog, he also points to Ha Ha Ha! as an example of how to do it well.

Brown runs the Small Business Blog of the Day website, which selected our blog back in June. We are truly flattered to again be highlighted for doing a good job here.

2) Remember when the television program Kama‘aina Backroads was here recently, taping a segment on Hamakua Springs? If you missed seeing the program on TV, here’s your chance.

Roland Torres, who produces the excellent new series, tells us the episode with the Hamakua Springs segment can be viewed on their website for a short time. Have a look.

The website states the video is for subscribers only, but Roland says that friends of Hamakua Springs are welcome to watch. So if you didn’t catch the program when it was on, or if you don’t live in our area, this is your chance. He tells us it will only be available for another couple weeks, so hurry. — posted by Leslie Lang