It will also have representatives of local infrastructure (water, land, energy, processing facilities), government and education – to discuss the community goal of producing 50% of its own own food.

The North Kohala community will produce 50% of the food it consumes” is one of the goals the community set forth in the North Kohala Community Development Plan. It is hard to know exactly how much of the food North Kohala residents consume is locally produced, but 10-15% is probably a good estimate.

The “local food” movement has been gaining traction all over the world and in Hawaii. Data is now bearing out the fact that eating locally grown foods are good for your health, the community and the economy….

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The National Agricultural Statistics Service’s Hawaii Field Office said the value was down 9 percent from $108.7 million in 2007.

The report said the industry still is a major contributor to Hawaii’s agriculture. Growers commented on slower business in 2008 as a result of the sluggish economy, crop losses from volcanic emissions on the Big Island, adverse weather conditions and the high cost of farming.

Hawaii County registered $42.8 million in sales. Honolulu County farmers brought in $38 million, Maui, $13.9 million and Kauai, $3.9 million.

Cut flowers, potted orchids, lei flowers, foliage sales, potted flowering plants, landscape plants and plant rentals all saw declines, as well as the wholesale value of bedding and garden plants.

Revenues from other nursery products were up slightly.

Source: Bizjournals

Clark, who skippers the 35-foot Alibi, had six charters booked in February and is assuming that business will be off by as much as 40 percent this year.

During the past six or seven years, the Alibi was typically booked for charters 250 days out of the year.

“I’ll be lucky if I do 150 this year,” Clark said.

Big Island sport fishing draws thousands of anglers each year, from the first-time novice to the seasoned veteran aiming to catch the ultimate prize, a “grander,” a Pacific blue marlin that can reach 1,000 pounds or more in the deep blue waters off the Kona Coast.

Many of them will spend $695 to $900 per day, and up to four or five days of fishing for marlin, tuna, mahimahi and other fish. And some will stay four to six weeks in Kona.

But the U.S. recession and the double-digit drop in visitor arrivals is taking a heavy toll. Operators say they expect business to be off by 20 percent to 30 percent this year for the dozens of boats at Honokohau Harbor, the home to Kona’s sport fishing industry.

Veteran fisherman McGrew Rice, who has been captain of the Ihu Nui since 1993 and has been fishing for marlin off Kona for more than 40 years, said the past few months have been the “worst ever.”

“Sept. 11 was better than this,” said Rice, who was idle for two weeks this month.

Visitor numbers released this week showed that Big Island arrivals dropped 26 percent in January from January 2008 and spending fell 32 percent, with vacationers spending $40 million less than a year ago.

Fuel prices began to hurt the business last summer after oil topped $126 per barrel, pushing the cost of a fill-up for charter boats, which operate on gasoline or diesel, to several hundred dollars per day.

But just as fuel prices tumbled last fall, the economy seized up and even the affluent vacationers who treated themselves to big-money golf and fishing became scarce.

“Charter fishing is a big-ticket item,” Rice said. “People right now aren’t doing the big-ticket things.”

The Charter Desk, which serves as a booking desk for charter boats, also weighs the big fish that are brought in and photographs customers with their catch. Most summers, The Charter Desk has three people “running around all day — this summer we had two and we were fine,” said Amber Hudnall, who has worked at the harbor since 1991.

While no one tracks spending associated with sport fishing in Kona, everyone believes cahrter clients’ spending ripples through the community. They rent cars, stay at hotels and condos for several weeks at a time, and pump money into the local stores and restaurants.

“If they don’t come, then the restaurant doesn’t see them, the hotel doesn’t see them,” said Jeff Fay, who owns and runs the Humdinger and has been in business since 1975. “It’s a bigger draw than I think a lot of people realize — the full impact of what charter fishing brings into this town.”
An expensive activity

Sport fishing is not for the budget conscious. On top of the full-day charters, a 15 percent to 20 percent tip for the captain and crew is expected.

And it’s a tough business.

The costs of keeping a boat in good shape are never ending. The high-quality tackle that customers expect is costly — rods with line can cost several thousand dollars each, lures cost as much as $175 and hooks are $5 each.

In addition to slip fees, charter boats that are incorporated pay the state 2 percent of their gross each year. And activity desks such as The Charter Desk take 20 percent for each booking they make.

Captains typically make about $125 a day, and deckhands earn between $80 and $100. Many of them do it for love of the sport.

“The guys here are all fishing addicts,” said Al Gustavson, owner of the Top Shape, who offers charters costing $900 a day but mostly goes out for his own fun. He also owns Goose’s Edge, which operates 14 Shell and Tesoro gas stations across the state.

“These guys work 12-hour days for eight-hour charters,” he said. “If they don’t get a tip it kills them.”

Of the 100 or so charter boats at 262-slip Honokohau Harbor, only about 60 are working boats, and of those, between 25 and 40 are regularly out fishing. Fewer than a dozen are owner-operators. Others are kept primarily for the owner’s personal use.

Most charter boats are owned by Mainland investors who employ full-time captains. Rice’s 35-foot boat is owned by a Honolulu investor, Alert Alarm of Hawaii President Robert R. Bean.

Clark works for a hui of investors that bought the Alibi and sister boat, Alibi 2, three years ago and have an estimated $350,000 into each boat, slip and corporation. The owners have had both boats on the market for sale for the past year, and the price has been reduced to $225,000 each. About a dozen other charter boats and slips also are on the market.

“They’d rather do something else with their money,” Clark said. “A lot of these guys, the economy happens, the first thing they get rid of is the toy.”

However, some boat owners who own second homes on the Kona Coast are opting to sell the real estate and keep the boats, some captains said.

“I fish a lot of wealthy people — this is the first time I’ve heard them say boo about anything,” Fay said.
Saved by the tournaments

The saving grace for the sport fishing industry in Kona is the tournament season, said Tim Robertson, managing partner of Melton’s Fishing Tackle across from the harbor.

The season, which kicks off at the end of June and runs through the end of August, coincides with the best season for marlin, and means thousands of dollars in winnings and extra pay for captains and crew and millions of dollars for the local economy.

“If you don’t have a tournament season and you have a winter like this, you’re in big trouble,” said Rice, who won last year’s World Cup Blue Marlin Championship by helping his client land a 773.5-pound marlin. The granddaddy of the tournaments, the Hawaiian International Billfish Tournament, will mark its 50th year in July and aims to sign 50 teams. So far, 30 teams have signed up, more than the average 20-25 teams that have fished the tournament over the past few years.
Aggressive marketing fills boats

While many boats are feeling the current economy, a few are doing well, thanks to aggressive marketing strategies and pricing.

Bite Me Sportfishing’s three boats were booked for most of February, and owner and captain Brian Wargo said last year was the busiest yet for his 5-year-old business.

“We do a lot more charters than anybody else,” Wargo said. “We don’t try to stick it to every person — we’d rather take care of everybody rather than just the rich.”

Wargo’s Bite Me boats take shares — most other boats strictly do private charters — and his rates start at $109 per person for a share and $395 for a four-hour private charter.

Wargo also has an aggressive marketing strategy that includes full-page ads in tourist publications, color brochures, a Web site with online booking, and a small store and booking desk next to the harbor.

The store, which opened in August 2008, is stocked with everything from T-shirts to hats to ladies’ panties to infant wear with the “Bite Me” logo. It has generated more bookings from walk-ins than expected, said Wargo’s wife, Deneen, who runs the store.

But while the Wargos stay busy, other captains, especially owner-operators, are not taking their boats out with customers as often as they would like.

Chuck Wigzell, owner and captain of the 40-foot Hooked Up, whose family owns the Pancho and Lefty’s Cantina & Restaurante in Kona, markets his business as much as Wargo, minus the store. He charges $695 for a full-day charter, far less than what some of the investor-owned boats charge.

“I don’t have a millionaire who owns my boat,” he said. “I bought the boat. I make the payments. It’s just a little bit tougher.”

Source: Pacific Business News

Honolulu is home to 14,090 industrial jobs, down 2% over the year. Kapolei accounts for 2,391 jobs, up 1% since December 2008. Aiea saw employment increase 5.7% and is currently home to 1,111 industrial workers, while Waipahu accounts for 1,088 of the state’s jobs, down 10% over the year. Puunene jobs are up 1%, with the fifth-ranked city home to 971 workers.

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