Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 11, Number 2, 1 ʻAukake 1994 — Loan fund profile [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Loan fund profile

Turning taro into poi

Waimea farmers open new mill

by Patrick Johnston After hurricane 'Iniki ravaged southwest Kaua'i two years ago the area lost its only poi mill. Now, thanks to the work of taro farmers John A'ana and Rawlins Char, it has a replacement. With funding from the Native Hawaiian Revolving Loan Fund, the Makaweli Poi Mill began full operation two months ago in a renovated building next to the Makaweli River in Waimea. The building - whieh onee served as an iee and soda factory — is headquarters to a process that begins in Char's and A'ana's taro patches far up the valley and ends on the dinner tables of the loeal residents. A'ana and Char supply all the taro

for the mill from their farms in the M a k a w e 1 i V a 1 1 e y . "Rawlins has about ten acres of land and I have

three," A'ana explains. "We divide our fields into sections and plant and harvest different sections every month. That way we always have taro ready to be processed." Twice a week, they bring, on average, 1 5 eighty-pound bags down to the mill where they steam, elean, grind, blend, and package the poi. lt's a labor-intensive operation and family ntembers all pitch in to get the job done. The finished product is shipped off to loeal supermarkets, small retailers and family functions. A'ana and Char, both longtime taro growers, say their first love is farming

but they felt there was a need for a mill in Waimea. "We are taro farmers first and poi producers second," Char explains.

"We've been growing taro all our lives but we didn't want to keep sending it Honolulu to get processed." Until September 1992 the Waimea Poi mill was the region's main supplier. After the hurricane, the mill's owners, who were getting older and planning to shut down soon anyway, decided that it was a good time to eall it quits. The shutdown left a big dent in the poi supply of a region with a high number of native Hawaiians, many raised on Ni'ihau on a more traditional diet. Both hard workers, Char and A'ana have weathered the barrage of papeiwork and regulations required to get a

loan for the mill and satisfy state heahh and safety inspectors. "We had second thoughts about it at times," Char says. "But it's been worth it." Char and A'ana have had a lot of kōkua from family members who helped with the renovation of the building and provided various other types of support. A'ana especially appreciates the support of his wife and of Char's girlfriend. "We spent a lot of time away from home when we were putting things together and they did a lot of grum-

bling," he says. "But , they stuck with us." A'ana feels that, with the rise in Hawaiian national pride, and an increased eoneem about health, both taro and poi will make a eomehaek in Hawai'i. "With the sovereignty movement and the interest in the traditional Hawaiian diet there is increasing demand for these Hawaiian foods." Taro supply, however, is a problem. As the older farmers die out, A'ana explains, there are not enough young ones around to replace them. ' There is also not mueh

land available to fanners for taro euhivation. A'ana dismisses notions that growing taro is a lot of backbreaking work and that is what is keeping young Hawaiians away from the fields. "If you stay on top of things, do what you have to do, then it's not too hard." The Makaweli Poi Mill ean be reached in Waimea, Kaua'i at 3381199. For information about the Native Hawaiian Revolving Loan Fund eall OHA's central office at 594-1888, your island liaison office, or the OHA tollfree line listed on page 16.

Above, John A'ana and Rawlins Char by taro fields deep in the Makaweli valley; left, poi mill in Waimea.

Inside the Makaweli poi mill: poi supplies for Waimea.

John A'ana's Waimea taro patch. Photos by Patrick Johnston