Pineapple Ends Reign in Hawaii
One-Time King of Fruits Abandoned for More Profitable Crops

By Mark Niesse
Associated Press
Sunday, May 21, 2006

WAIALUA, Hawaii -- Alan Wong remembers working as a teenager on central Oahu's pineapple fields. Now, parts of the island's huge plantations no longer grow a fruit that for many symbolized America's 50th state.

"It was a different time," Wong said. "It's a little sad."

Across the Hawaiian islands, the famous industry is slumping as pineapples are being grown and shipped cheaply to the United States from Thailand, the Philippines, Brazil, China, India and Costa Rica.

With the industry facing stiff foreign competition, specialized crops such as noni, papaya and macadamia nuts are filling the void.

"We're losing what Hawaii once had, but we're moving forward to a better time," said Wong, a well-known local chef and the owner of several restaurants, including the Pineapple Room in Honolulu. "If you want a taste of Hawaii, you can have it in ways you never had before."

The transition to niche fruits and vegetables has been steadily growing over the past 20 years.

Revenue from products such as coffee, mangos, flowers and other tropical fruits has increased from $204 million in 1984 to $403 million in 2004, according to the state Department of Agriculture.

By comparison, pineapple production was $83.1 million in 2004, down from $88.9 million in 1984.

Pineapple fields covered about 13,000 acres on Hawaii in 2004, down from 35,000 acres in 1987.

In February, Fresh Del Monte Produce Inc. announced it would end its Hawaii pineapple operations by mid-2008. About 700 workers would lose jobs dating back to an era when plantations imported workers from Asia.

As Hawaii's traditional crop has declined, farmers have shifted to more specialized food products that sell for premium prices.

One is the round, pale and bumpy noni. The bitter-tasting juice from the fruit -- which sells for about $30 a bottle -- is being promoted as a remedy for fever, skin infections, stomach pain and respiratory ailments.

"Everyone is trying to do what we're doing here," said Laakea Kamauoha, president of the Kamauoha Foundation, which educates farmers and helps get their products to market. "Noni is a product that we're looking to use to get farmers back on the land. A lot of land is now open."

Macadamia nut production also has increased in recent years, as more pineapple fields become available, said Dana Gray, chairman of Oils of Aloha, which processes macadamia nut oil.

"There's an impression that after sugar and pineapple went, agriculture was dead, and we would just turn the islands over to tourism. That's not the case," Gray said.

At Dean Okimoto's herb and salad greens farm in Waimanalo, the narrow green rows of inches-high arugula, basil and chili peppers add to dishes at 120 restaurants.

"Farmers are having to change to meet market demands," said Okimoto, president of the Hawaii Farm Bureau Federation.

In many ways, the loss of pineapples is a natural response to globalization trends, said Sandra Lee Kunimoto, Board of Agriculture chairwoman. Poorer countries have lower labor and land costs, and it's more efficient for them to grow common fruits in bulk, she said.

A Hawaii pineapple brand, Maui Gold, emphasizes its sweet, juicy flavor and its local origins to attract customers, said Brian Nishida, president of Maui Pineapple Co.

"Imagine being a tourist and coming to Hawaii and not having pineapple," Nishida said. "We are very much niche players. . . . We believe that gives us an advantage over the mass marketers."