The Taro TattlerDepartment of Agricultural and Resou~ceEconomics

College of Tropical Agriculture and Human ResourcesUniversity of Hawaii

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

VOL. 3, NO.3 May-August 1991

It's been a little while since welast visited, and there is much to talkabout. One big item to report is thatwith the help of various people, theTaro Project has developed an AirShipped taro sticker to go on our yel­low bag tags.

--- --Via Air

~Once this sticker is placed on the tagit will allow for product differentia­tion at the wholesale market: airflown vs boat shipped taro. A smallquantityof the stickers hasbeengivento export-taro shippers along withthe name of the company that pro­duced them (J&D International, Inc,536-5469). Remember mislabelingboat-shipped taro with these stickersis unlawful as they are misrepresent­ing the product's quality.

Also informationalcardsonChi­nese taro will be handedoutat world­wide conventions. The card hasin­formation about our fine product,along with a picture of our trade­mark yellow label and the names ofthe Hawaii taro shippers who werelisted in the 1991Agricultural ExportDirectory. Thanks to the OOA andthe DBED for their help in gettingour product noticed.

UPCOMING EVENTSI

Windward Community CollegeAnnual Taro Festival

Saturday,AugustlO,1991.Thisis the

third year this informational and cul­tural event has taken place and everyyear it seems to get better. This funfilled day startsat9 amand finishes at2 pm on WCC's campus near the in­tersections of the LikeLike andKahekeli Hwys. in Kaneohe, Oahu.Call WCC at 235-7433for more infor­mation.

SOMETHING TO THINKABOUT-NOW!

As the marketfor Chinese taro onthe mainland becomes more matureand competitive, Hawaii growers aregoing to have to make some toughdecisions. To give you an example ofsuch a decision, here's a problem thatshould concern us all. In the last fewmonths, one LA shipper who buystarofromHawaii(notourfriendJamesLee),hasbeen receiving Chinese taroinabagprintedwith"HAWAIIbrandtaro" in big bold 4" letters. The onlyproblem is that the taro is from a for­eigncountry! The baghas thecountryof origin on it, printed inconspicu­ously on the seam and in very tinyletters, so it's not quite illegaljust un­ethical. ThepointisHawaiitarofarm­ers, with the exception of a few, stillship taro to LA in bags which do littleto promote repeatbuyingof their fineproduct. So what do you want todo...put ads in the LA Chinese lan­guage newspapers? Call us at theTattler we have some ideas.

FYI the Department ofAgriculture'sMeasurementStandardsDivision is attempting to deal withthis taro bag labeling problem alongwith the labeling problems of Mauionions and Kona coffee.

On a related matter is the issue ofgrading Chinese taro. While we'veheard farmersbothproandcon on theissue, let us remind you that QUAL­ITYstandardsoffer these advantages:1) Allow for more meaningful price

quotations since there is a moredirectrelationshipofprice toqual­ity.

2) Make possible the sale of goodsby sample or description. If thestandards are well understoodand properly utilized, productscan be bought and sold Sight un­seen.

3) Allow consolidation of productsfor shipment to reduce transpor­tation and handling costs.

4) May increase consumer demandbased ongreater consumerconfi­dence in the product due to qual­ity consistency.

5) Contribute to faster and moresatisfactorysettlementoflossanddamage claims.

6) Permit consumers to communi­cate their preferences back to theproducers.

Ifyouwould like togettheball rolling ongradingpleasecall Sam Campatthe DOAat548-7145.

A whileago weintroducedyoutoMax, a very enterprising (yet ficti­tious) taro farmer. Two of her stron­gest business qualities are long-rangeproduction and sales planning, andQUALITY service. She is also alwaysonthe lookout for ways to diversifyherproductline. About4monthsagoshe found the following article, andalong with a potter friend of hers, has

1 TheTaro Tattler VOL. 3, NO.3 May-August 1991

come upwitha veryuniquetaro houseplant and planter product which isselling like crazy at the craft fairs.She's even made little tags to hangaround the planter to explain the im­portanceoftaro inHawaiiand how tocare for this unique plant. She sharedthe article that got her little side busi­ness going with us:

"In the South Pacific, where tarotubers are a staple crop, the quilted,satiny green leaves attain a height andspread of five feet, earning them thenickname "elephant ears." When theplant is grown indoors in a good-size pot,its leaves become only half that size butare still quite attractive.

The banded tubers of the taro(Colocasia esculenta) can be found yearround in Latin and Oriental markets. Theyare dull brown incolor and roughly spheri­cal in shape . .Small pink buds should bevisible within the bands.

A reliable way to sprout a tuber is ina clear, self-sealing plast ic bag filled withunmilled sphagnum moss. The mossshould be only slightly damp (squeezeout any excess moisture) or the tubermay rot. After completely surroundingthe tuber with moss, seal the bag andprovide it with bottom heat. Check themoss for dryness every couple of daysduring the one to four weeks it takes forsprouts to appear.

Move the tuber to a pot when theroots are a few inches long, sett ing it justbelow the surface of the soil mix. As aprecaution against over-watering, choosea container whose diameter is only aboutan inch greater than that of the tuber.Keep the soil evenly moist, and afterabout six weeks begin feeding monthly.

Like many other members of thearoidfamily, taroflourishes without muchdirect sun and prefers higher than aver­age humidity. One way to increase hu­midity isby double potting . Setthe plant'scontainer inside a slightly larger pot, fill­ing the space in between with moist sph­agnum or peat moss.

Taro goesdormant in winter ifgrownin acool setting, as indicated by witheringfoliage in late autumn. A plant set in awarm location during winter can be keptgreen for an entire year, but it will losevigor the following year. It is better toforce the tuber into dormancy by gradu­ally withholding water until the foliageshrivels completely. Store the leaflesstuber in its pot for about two months,keeping the soil barely moist. After twomonths resume regular watering and fer­tilizing to spur new growth.

Similarto taro but diminutive enough

to be grown on a windowsill is malanga(Xanthosoma sagittifolium), also knownas yautia. The yam-like tuber, sold inLatin markets, produces a gigantic plantwhen field-grown, but in a flowerpot itgives rise to a compact cluster of showyleaves that seldom exceeds about a footin height. Foliage is arrow-shaped andmossy green with contrasting pale veins.Treat malanga tubers and plants as youwould taro, taking special care to providehigh humidity. Be sure after potting up asprouted tuber to slip a clear plastic bagover the container until the first leavesappear." (From Horticulture, Vo16?, No.11, November 1989)

HELPFUL HINTS

A Possible Antidotefor the nones

As stressed in an earlier issue oftheTattler,people packagingand sell­ing luau leaves provide very little in­formation to theconsumerabouthowto prepare them, and without it youmay have a hard time attracting newcustomers. Hyou need help with thiscontact us! Another area that is ne­glected when selling raw luau leaves,especially to your new customers, iswhy you need to cook the leaves, andif you do get itchy in the cookingprocess, how to spell r.e.l.i.e.f.

Taro itching is a problemfor bothgrowers and consumers. Farmersusuallyget itchy whenharvestingtarorootsorleavesondamporrainydays.Also, weeding during this type ofweather condition may also get youitchy. Consumers often are affectedwhen peeling wet taro skin off cormswhich they are about to cook.

In the community-minded spiritof our newsletter, long time taro leafgrowers and good business persons,Clifford and LiWongof Wongs TaroLeafFarm in Kaneohe, offer just onepossibleantidote for the itchiness thatmay work for you, your workers andyour uninformed customers.

Remedy for External Itching: H yourskingets itchy from handling taro usesometable salt to relieve theirritation.Wash the itchy area first with coldwater. Then apply enough salt tocover the areaandrubitinthoroughlywith a little cold water. Rinse off. Dothis 3 or 4 times and if the itching

remains,repeattheremedy. Thistime,however, let the salt stay on the skinfor 3 to 5 minutes before rinsing com­pletely.

Remedy for Internal Itching: Con­suming taro or taro leaves that havenot been properly cooked can causeinternalitching-mostlyin the moutharea. One way to relive this irritationis to sprinkle some salt into the mouthand then to cough-out the salt/salivamixture. Then sprinkle a little moresalt into the mouth and swallow it.(You should then re-eook your taroand leaves a little longer.)

Should this saltremedyfail torelievetheitching call yourlocal Poison ControlCenter immediately!

Consumers: peel the taro whenitis dry. Cut corms into small piecesand place in a colander a little at atime. Run each batch under cold wa­ter while shaking-avoid using yourbare hands. Now you are ready tocook.

ON THE BOOKSHELFand HARD-DISK

QuickPayisadded to Quicken. Awhileback we introduced you to Quicken acomputer based software packagewhich greatly reduces bookkeepingheadaches. Well, now there is aQuickPay add-on package which au­tomaticallycalculatesand keeps trackof all your employees wages and de­ductions. See your local softwaredealer orcall Intuit at 1-800432-6935for this $30wonder.

The 1991 Pesticide Directory, by LoriThomsonHarveyandW.T.Thomson.This annual is for those who wish toknow just about everythingabout theUS pesticide industry including:manufacturers;formulations;keyper­sonnel, and other pertinent informa­tion. The book is $75 plus tax fromThomsonPublications,P.O.Box9335,Fresno, CA 93791 or call (209) 435­2163or FAX(209) 435-8319.

.Slugs andSnails, by Julian Yates. ThisUrban Pest Press newsletter may offersome relief to those farmers who havebeeninundatedwith these slimypests

2 The Taro Tattler VOL. 3, NO. 3 May-August 1991

in the past. Call the Department ofEntomology at UH at 956-7076 andask for this 1988 one page document.

Chinese orFuller Rose Beetle, by DavidMarsden. Another helpful bulletinfrom the UH Cooperative ExtensionService, this brochure may help youkeep thesepestsatbay. Call yourlocalextension office and ask for BulletinNo. 10.

H:althyHaro~t ill: A Directory ofSus­tamable Agriculture and HorticultureOrganizations. This 160 page book~uts ~ou in contact with organiza­tions mvolved in organic and othertypes of natural farming. Send $16.95plus $2 postage to Potomac ValleyPress, 1424 16th St. NW #105 Wash-. 'mgton, D.C. 20036; (202)462-8800.

Also you may want to check outthese mail order houses for organic~d resouree-efficient farming sup­plies;Gardener's Supply Company.

"America's number 1 source of in­novative gardening products".Chemical-freepest control supplies,composting equipment, irrigationmaterials, etc. Write 128 IntervaleRoad, Burlington, VT 05401; (802)863-1700.

Garden's Alive! Safe pest control,organic fertilizers, etc. Natural Gar­dening Research Center, Highway48, P.O. Box 149,Sunman, IN 47041;(812) 623-3800.

The Necessary Catalog. State-of-the­art organicsuppliesfor the farmerorlarge-scale gardener. P.O. Box 305,New Castle, VA 24127; (800) 447­5354.

Planetary Solutions, Drip irrigationcatalog with complete instructionson how to install a system. Send $1to P.O.Box1049,Boulder,CO, 80306­1049, or call 1-800-488-2088.

The Urban Farmer Store. Agricul­tural sc~edrip irrigationsuppliesatbulkpnces. Send$1to 2833VincenteStreet, San Francisco, CA 94116­2721.

SOURCES ANDRESOURCES

The Pacific Business CenterProgram Offers Help

Located in the Business School atUH Manoa is the small federallyfunded organization, the Pacific Busi­ness Center Program (PBCP). Thisprogram'sgoal is to provide technicaland managerial assistance to busi­ne~s in the ~acific, including Ha­wan, by matching-up clients with in­terested specialists. An example ofsucha project wouldbe ifyou wantedto growtarohydroponically(wedon'tsuggest it) and you need a productionand economic assessment done for abank loan. PBCP would try to locatesomeone with the technical skill toadvise you with this venture. While~e ~rganization's match-making ser­VIce IS free, the assistance of the out­si~es~alistsisreasonablypriced.If

this service sounds good to you givethePBCP'sdirector,AngelaWilliams,a call at 956-6286.

Agricultural Soil ConservationService (ASCS) Wants to Help

You Help YourselfAre you tired of seeing your soil

pourinto irrigationditches? Or, wouldyou like your paddy water to beslightly cooler as it passes from onelo'i to another? Well ASCS maybethefolksyo~'vebeenlookingfor. Throughthe Agncultural Conservation Pro­gram, ASCS helps farmers like your­self solve conservation and environ­~entalproblems. Theirbrochuresays,Cost-share payments reimburse a

producer for a percentage of the costo~perfo~ga practice and are pro­vided asmcentives to doconservationwork. This reimbursement is not aloan and no repayment is required asl?ngasyouuseandmaintaintheprac­tice throughout its life-span (usually5-10ye~s)." If this sounds like a wayyoucanrmproveyourfarmcallHenryFong on Oahu at 541-2643 or look inthe US Government section of yourphone book for your local ASCS of­flee. Thanks to Karol Haraguchi ofHanalei for the tip.

Office of Hawaiian AffairsandAluLike

Are you a Native Hawaiian andare trying to expand your businessand need a loan (sorry, farms do notqualify at this time)? Well you maywant to contact OHA about their re­volving loan opportunities. Contactthat office on Oahu at 548-3777 andask for Ken Sato,

. Also, ifyou are Native Hawaiianand want to getyourbusinesslisted inthe OHA and Alu Like sponsoredNative Hawaiian Business directory,call the Alu Like's business office onOahu at 524-1225...hurry time is run­ningout.

DepanmentofAgricuUureEvery year the Marketing Divi­

sion of the OOA puts out two exportmarketingdirectories, onefor agricul­tural products-fresh and processed,and for the floral industry. Thesedirectories are mailed around theworldandaregivenoutattradeshows-theyincreasethebusinessofpeoplewho are listed in them. If this soundsgood to you call the Marketing Divi­sion at 548-4250and ask how you canbe listed in 1992 directories.

DepanrnentofAgriculturalandResource Economics-UH Manoa

With the same federal fundswhich have brought you the TaroProject and this newsletter, AREC re­searchers and their colleagues havealso developed a variety of Economic~actSheets on numerous crops. Theymclude: taro, coffee, lychee, cocoa,shrimp, banana, pepper, cashew, tea,papaya, and macadamia nut, amongothers. Call CfAHR's publicationof­fice at 956-3176 for reprints of thesefine publications.

United Fresh Fruit and VegetableAssociation (UFFVA)

Along the samelinesas the abovementioned fact sheets, theUFFVA hasproduced a group offact sheets whichcon~~ormationon produce pro­duction, history, retailing, grades andstandards and the like. These sheetscover: bean sprouts, bell peppers,~bbage,endive & escarole, eggplant,ginger root, leeks, parsley, shallots,

3 The Taro Tattler VOL. 3, NO.3 May-August 1991

bananas, blackberries, cherimoyas,oranges, papayas, peaches and plan­tains. Unlike theformer group thesesheets are notfree, the whole set plusbinderis $90to non-member,but theymay be well worth the price. CallUFFVA in Virginia at (703)836-3410for more info.

ClubFriedaNewsletterNow, from the folks that intro­

duced the Kiwi fruit to the US, comestheir latest newsletter for those on thecutting edge of exotic foods, such astaro. The subscription for this news­letter which is published 6 times ayear sells for $6 and can be purchasedby writing Frieda's Finest, P.O. Box58488,Los Angeles,CA90058. Hey, ifyoudon't know what peoplearebuy­inghow canyou plan to diversityandstay financially healthy?

CHEMICALLY SPEAKING

ThePesticide LabelReportsonContinuing Research

crAHR'sThePestiddel.llbeInews­letter of December 1990 reports onwork at UH's Pesticide RegistrationProgram. The Program is currentlyfield testing the following chemicalsfor use on taro:1) Chlorpyrifos, dimethoate, andSafer soap insecticides to control taroroot aphid on dryland taro.2) Metalaxyl fungicide to controlpythium and phytophthora on wetand dryland taro.NOTE: These trials are being conductedprimarily for efficacy, although pesticideresidues are beingevaluated insomeofthetests. The goal is to register these pesti­cidesasspecial localneedusesforHawaii'sminor crops. They cannot be legally usedat this time. Again, if you plan to labelyour taro as "organically grawn" thesechemicals may notbeappropriate for use.

JUST A THOUGHT

Last time we had talked aboutideas to sell more poi taro, especiallyduringtimesof glut. Howaboutsomenew ideas for other snack foods fromChinese taro? If you've been watch­ingtheJack intheBoxcommercialsonTV you have seen curly fries, wellhow about curly taro fries? Or howabout taro waffle fries? You may beableto purchase theprocessingequip­ment from local restaurant supplycompaniesifyouplanto process themyourself, for instance at all the craftfairs where curly potato-fries are be­ing made. Or ifyou are a taro farmerperhapsyou could get local french frymaking companies interested in thisidea. Be forewarned, however, thatcutting taro is harder than potato andso some modifications of equipmentmay be necessary.

IN THIS ISSUE OF

The Taro Tattler.:. Air-Shipped taro sticker introduced.:. Third annual taro festival at Windward.:. Taro making you itchy, here's help.:. There's plenty of business help out there

Printedonrecycleable paper

For more informationplease contact:The Taro ProjectDepartment of Agricultural & Resource EconomicsGilmore Hall 115University of HawaiiHonolulu, HI 96822Attn: Jim Hollyer, 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.

The Taro ProjectDepartment of Agricultural & Resource EconomicsGilmore Hall 115University of HawaiiHonolulu, HI 96822Attn: Jim Hollyer, editor

TO:

4 The Taro Tattler VOL. 3, NO.3 May-August 1991