|
TheBuzz Erika Engle |
Boy, oh boy, more
and more attention
for Hawaii’s moiSix Hawaii chefs and the restaurants in which they serve moi got some nice publicity this week in Nation's Restaurant News, an industry magazine.
The story quoted Dean Toda, marketing information specialist for the state Department of Agriculture's Aquaculture Development Program. He explained that moi, or Pacific threadfin, was once reserved for alii, or Hawaiian royalty. Toda gave some other background and proudly pointed out that Hawaii has the oldest history of aquaculture in the United States.
After a series of changes to the law there are a couple moi farms, he said, of which Cates International Inc. is the first and only cage culture producer in the United States.
"Worldwide there are lots of cage operations going on," he said. "For Hawaii, up until about four years ago, you couldn't lease the ocean. Now you can lease a portion of the ocean for acquaculture, through DLNR (the state Department of Land and Natural Resources)."
Cates also got some nice publicity for the fish it raises.
STAR-BULLETIN FILE
Moi, or Pacific threadfin, is in such high demand, some suppliers won't add new mainland accounts.
"When Roy (Yamaguchi) took our fish to the Today show in New York City, it was the biggest gift," said Virginia Enos, vice president of Kailua-based Cates International.
Anchor Ann Curry expressed a desire to try the fish dish in the brief TV appearance for the Hawaii chef and restaurateur, she said.
"That kind of national exposure, you just can't pay for that," Enos said.
This latest bit of free national exposure comes at a time when Cates International is working to double its production to 10,000 pounds a week by this time next year. Its current 5,000 pounds a week may go to 6,500 by August. It is the state's largest moi farmer.
"Their main restriction is the amount of fingerlings, so they need a lot of babies to produce the fish. They're trying to do their own hatchery and are in the process of trying to get one built," Toda said.
Cates International's fingerling supplier is Oceanic Institute, which pioneered research on the viability of farm-raised moi.
"We buy 100 percent of our supplies from Oceanic and they are at 100 percent capacity," said Enos.
There's a gap between hatchery plans and reality and the gap is full of government bureaucracy.
"We have been pushing for nearly two years to work with the state of Hawaii to cut loose some state land for development of a commercial hatchery," she said.
The company met with Gov. Linda Lingle recently to brief her on its challenges. Cates International would need waterfront or near waterfront land with vessel and trucking access, such as a harbor. It would also need to be able to drill into the ground in order to draw clean, filtered seawater.
While Oceanic Institute is able to draw clean seawater there is no harbor for vessel access.
Cates has looked at three different areas -- Sand Island, Barbers Point and Waianae Small Boat Harbor, around which plentiful state land is in the hands of different departments and not zoned for agricultural use.
Expansion for Cates with its own hatchery, or others' entrance into the market, can't come soon enough to satisfy any increased interest the Nation's Restaurant Review article or other publicity may spawn.
"It's been sad, we've had to turn away countless requests for the product from the mainland," said Enos. "We reluctantly tell them we can send a sample, but don't have enough to supply you on a regular basis.
"This is the case we're trying to make with the state, getting them to understand how well we could do with this 'Buy Hawaii' product.
She has also heard of West Coast chefs having to look to Canada and elsewhere for fresh fish.
"I really hate to see foreign product supplying the U.S. I'd like to see the U.S. meet its own demand, and if Hawaii can get some of that business it would be wonderful," she said.
Erika Engle is a reporter with the Star-Bulletin.
Call 529-4302, fax 529-4750 or write to Erika Engle,
Honolulu Star-Bulletin, 500 Ala Moana Blvd., No. 7-210,
Honolulu, HI 96813. She can also be reached
at: eengle@starbulletin.com
