Taste of Hawaiian Range Gala Returns

Hawai‘i Island will celebrate its agriculture at the Taste of Hawaiian Range gala.

The ag festival is coming Saturday, Sept. 7, 2019, at the Old Kahilu Town Hall behind Parker Ranch Center. It will offer cuisine from 20 culinary stations featuring local, pasture-raised meats—beef, pork, goat and lamb—plus produce.

Taste of the Hawaiian Range also offers a full lineup of free family fun at the outdoor event from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday at the adjacent YMCA Minuke Ole Park. Children can learn about farm life in the Keiki Farm Hands tent, sponsored by the Hawai‘i Farm Bureau. Youth can pedal their own kid-sized tractors, use tiny farm tools, plant a seed to take home and grow, plus “milk” a hand-painted replica of a Holstein cow. In addition, there will be a display of live chicks and growing vegetable plants while American Machinery will exhibit a farm tractor.

The island’s 4-H youth will present a livestock exhibit complete with educational signage. Horse rides will be available for a nominal fee thanks to members of the Hawai‘i High School Rodeo Association. Also on tap under the big top are nearly 30 educational exhibits, plus vendors selling local produce and value-added products. Learn how to grow mushrooms, preserve food at home, graft a tree and more at free educational presentations starting at 10:30 a.m. Saturday.

Gala tickets are $50 presale online, at Parker Ranch Store and during the Taste Ag Fest. They will sell for $60 at the door. For ticket info and the full list of ag fest and gala participants, plus the lineup of presentations, visit www.tasteofthehawaiianrange.com.

The Old Kahilu Town Hall (Mana Christian ‘Ohana) is located behind Parker Ranch Center at 67-1182 Lindsey Road in Waimea. For more event information, visit www.TasteoftheHawaiianRange.com or phone Susan at (808) 969-8258.

The Taste of the Hawaiian Range and Agriculture Festival provides a venue for sustainable agricultural education, plus encouragement and support of locally produced ag products, according to an event press release.

The quality and growth of the event are rooted in business participation, sponsorship and in-kind donations.

2019 supporters include: Ace Hardware and Crafts in Waimea, Adaptations, Ahualoa Hog Farm, Asagi Hatchery, BEI Hawaii, Big Island Goat Diary, Double D Ranch Hawaii, Hawaiian Beverage Company, Hawaiian Hogs, Hawaii Beef Producers, Hawaii Cattlemenʻs Association, Hawai‘i Cattlemenʻs Council, Hawai‘i Community College Agriculture Program, Hawai’i Community College Culinary Programs-East and West Hawai‘i, Hawai‘i County 4-H Livestock Association, Hawai‘i Farm Bureau, Hawai‘i Farm & Food Magazine, Hawai‘i Ulu Copperative, Hirabara Farms, Island Of Hawaii YMCA, KK Ranch, Kamehameha Schools Land Assets Division, Kuahiwi Ranch, Meadow Gold Dairies Hawaii, Ohana Banana Farm, Palani Ranch, Paniolo Cattle Company, Parker Ranch Center, PepsiCo, Ponoholo Ranch, Sysco Hawai‘i and University of Hawai‘i College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resources at Manoa.