Items labeled from "Hawaii" may not be

[Miulang]

A lot of times, if you go to the ABC Store or other places, you'll find things that might say "Hawai'i" on them, but when you look at the label, you find that it's manufactured in the Philippines or Taiwan or China.

There is a state law that says in order to be legally labeled as being from Hawai'i,

at least 51 percent of a product must have "wholesale value" added within the state of Hawaii, whether it be through manufacturing, assembly or packaging.

This leaves a lot of room for creative "interpretation" of the law, according to the State Dept. of Agriculture, and creates unfair competition for businesses that do grow or manufacture products that are at least 51% Hawai'i-based.

No one has been able to put a dollar value on how much money isn't going into the hands of Hawai'i businesses, and the Dept. of Agriculture doesn't have the manpower available to inspect all products that have a "Hawai'i" label.

A team of 12 inspectors works for the department, but besides examining food labels, they also inspect commercial devices, which range from gas pumps to taxi meters.

"We don't have the resources to send inspectors out every day to check every shelf in every store," said Pierpont.

Typically, instead of fining companies for violating state labeling laws, which can be up to $2,000 per day, the branch writes a letter to the company. Pierpont said companies are usually cooperative.

Loke said the state's best weapon right now is its "Seal of Quality" program, launched in May following a 2002 legislative mandate. The seal, offered to hundreds of genuine Hawaii-grown products, according to Loke, has strict criteria.

"At this point we're using the seal of quality to compete," said Loke. "The seal of quality is a genuine, grown-in- Hawaii, made-in-Hawaii, premium product. You see a seal of quality label on a product, you can rest assured it's a good product and that the state has reviewed and certified it to be a quality product."

So if you want to support local business people, make sure you look for the Hawai'i "seal of quality" sticker on the package. And when you're sending gifts to friends and family outside the state, try to buy products with that seal to show your support for island businesses.

Miulang

[Hellbent]

Re: Items labeled from "Hawaii" may not be

so wait, does the products say 'made in hawaii' or just 'hawaii'?

[Miulang]

Re: Items labeled from "Hawaii" may not be

so wait, does the products say 'made in hawaii' or just 'hawaii'?

Some people don't see the difference. For some people just seeing "Hawaii" on a label means that it must have been made in Hawai'i. Some companies say "Hawaiian-style" which implies that it is not made in Hawai'i (like potato chips). The "Made in Hawai'i" designation usually means it meets the State of Hawai'i's legal definition. The "Seals of Quality" is an additional program by the State that is the official recognition that the product is either 100% grown or manufactured in Hawai'i, which is a far more stringent designation.

Miulang

[koloagirl]

Re: Items labeled from "Hawaii" may not be



Did anyone else read the article in the "Advertiser" last week that spoke about the obiquitous purple orchid lei that most of the hotels give to visitors -- heck, that almost anyplace gives out come to think of it!

It turns out that these lei, for the most part, are being imported from Thailand! Yikes! The article said that the locally made leis cost in bulk
$4 a lei, whereas the Thai leis cost $1.50!!

What is more Hawaiian than a lei? Not a silk or plastic one, but an actual fresh (?) flower lei? I would have never thought that we'd resort to importing flower lei from overseas! I know once in awhile you can only get maile from the Cook Islands, but that is the exception.

I think this is really sad, and I'm sure that 99.9% of people who receive these leis think they are getting something from Hawai'i.

[joshuatree]

Re: Items labeled from "Hawaii" may not be

Did anyone else read the article in the "Advertiser" last week that spoke about the obiquitous purple orchid lei that most of the hotels give to visitors -- heck, that almost anyplace gives out come to think of it!

It turns out that these lei, for the most part, are being imported from Thailand! Yikes! The article said that the locally made leis cost in bulk
$4 a lei, whereas the Thai leis cost $1.50!!

What is more Hawaiian than a lei? Not a silk or plastic one, but an actual fresh (?) flower lei? I would have never thought that we'd resort to importing flower lei from overseas! I know once in awhile you can only get maile from the Cook Islands, but that is the exception.

I think this is really sad, and I'm sure that 99.9% of people who receive these leis think they are getting something from Hawai'i.

The cost is the sole reason why we're seeing leis from Thailand rather than from Hawaii. $4.00 vs $1.50, for every three leis from Hawaii, you can get eight leis from Thailand. That adds up fast.

[LikaNui]

Re: Items labeled from "Hawaii" may not be

so wait, does the products say 'made in hawaii' or just 'hawaii'?

That reminds me of the trick used by Underwriters Labs. When you buy any kind of electronic item, see if the tag or label says UL Rated or UL Listed. Anything at all can be "listed" with them, but you definitely want "rated".