Taste of the Hawaiian Range has moved to a new venue.
Big Island’s largest agricultural showcase is both inside and out for the 22nd Taste of the Hawaiian Range on Saturday, Sept. 29. Activities are 9 a.m.to 7:30 p.m. and include a free, outdoor agriculture festival at the YMCA Minuke Ole Park, plus indoor classroom presentations and the evening Taste gala at the adjacent Mana Christian ‘Ohana complex behind Parker Ranch Center.
The agriculture festival offers livestock displays, educational exhibits, local product sampling and sales, food trucks and beverages.
“Find out how to attract bees to your landscape, visit a “plant doctor” for help on garden questions and taste-test local beef jerky, breadfruit, honey and more,” suggests event co-chair Jeri Moniz.
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Keiki can enjoy agricultural-themed activities and games; pony rides will be available for a nominal fee. Hawai‘i Island 4-H youth will offer a display of farm animals and a booth on how youngsters can join the project-based organization—4-H is marking 100 years in Hawai‘i during 2018.
Learn how agriculture is the science, art and practice of producing food at agricultural and culinary-themed presentations 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. in the five-classroom complex behind the Mana Christian ‘Ohana hall. In addition, there will be an all-day exhibit of invasive species.
Open to the public and geared to farmers, ranchers and culinarians, the free presentations will include questions and answers. Talks will cover a wide range of topics: the Food Safety Modernization Act, invasive species, federal worker protection standards on proper pesticide use and safety, Hawai‘i tea production, agriculture technology with Smart Yields, best-use practices for beef carcass utilization and the cutting-edge GMO research and technology involving CRISPR-Cas9.
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Leading the 2018 installment of Cooking Pasture-Raised Beef 101 is Chef Edwin Goto of Waimea’s Village Burger and Noodle Club. He will demonstrate how to prepare beef flank steak and pork belly; the activity offers sampling. Tickets are $10 at the door or online.
Featuring over 20 culinary stations preparing pasture-raised meats and local produce, the 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Taste gala is both inside and out of the Mana Christian ‘Ohana hall and is open to 500 attendees. Culinary participants include Mai Grille, Westin Hapuna Beach Resort, Café Pesto, Pueo’s Osteria, Merriman’s, Waipio Cookhouse, Roy’s Waikoloa Bar & Grill, Annie’s Island Fresh Burgers, The Mauna Kea Beach Hotel, Village Burger/Noodle Club, Daylight Mind, Waikoloa Beach Marriott Resort and Spa, Fairmont Orchid Hawaii, Sam Choy’s Kai Lanai, Ippy’s Hawaiian BBQ, Puako Provisions and Catering, plus Hawai‘i Community College in both Hilo and Palamanui.
In addition, this year’s Taste offers some new veggie-centric stations by Under the Bodhi Tree and Redwater Café; tasty desserts by local college culinary students and non-alcoholic beverages. Culinary chair Sandy Barr Rivera says two chefs are excited to prepare dishes using more mature beef than usually found in our markets; “it is known in ranching circles to be rich in flavor with a good texture.”
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Gala tickets are $50 online and at Parker Ranch Store; they will sell for $60 at the door if available. For ticket info, visit online.
Mana Christian ‘Ohana is located behind Parker Ranch Center at 67-1182 Lindsey Road.
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