With perfect weather, lush greenery and a pride in the ‘aina seen few other places, how could one not think of Hawaii as an ideal place to cultivate the freshest fish, grow the most abundant flowers and produce the best-fed and treated farm animals? But the reality is that the state is small, overpopulated and currently imports 80 percent of its required goods. The cost of other resources and introduction of chain stores have created a system where it can be much cheaper for businesses to sell imported goods under the illusion of local origin. Even if something has a label that claims it’s local, you’re better off doing some investigating to see where your food and goods come from. Your dollar may not be supporting the local economy as much as you think.

Where’s the beef ?

Not necessarily all here. Buddy Nobriga, of Nobriga Ranch on Maui, said while the local beef industry is the strongest of the dying local food industries, there are still too few feed lots to sustain a local beef industry. Land and feed are expensive. Local ranchers who do raise cattle sell the calves to mainland ranches, some of which are eventually shipped back to Hawaii all butchered and packaged.

Island pork may also not be quite local. According to Nobriga, pigs imported from the mainland are supposed to be slaughtered here. But little enforcement has allowed the import of already-slaughtered pigs.

Veteran agriculture expert Nobriga also said “milk from the mainland takes days to be shipped. When the milk gets to Hawaii, it’s then homogenized and pasteurized again. By then the milk is maybe 14 days old. How can it be labeled as fresh? If you get milk from the Big Island, it’s maybe only five or six days old.”

Fish available for consumer purchase in Hawaii is between two-thirds and three-quarters imported. Overfishing is cited as one reason for the imports. And while ‘ahi isn’t necessarily on the Monterey Bay Aquarium’s Seafood Watch list as one to avoid—it depends where it’s from—it is wise to avoid too much ‘ahi consumption, for your health and the fish’s.

And the import dependency doesn’t stop at food. Those beautiful orchids that make up the iconic lei of Hawaii are mostly from Thailand. While most flower and lei shops carry a mix of locally grown and imported flowers, the demand is too high for them to depend on local flower farms. Maile lei from Tonga may be bigger and have longer shelf lives. Roses from South America may be cheaper and better quality. Pikake is usually local, but check with your florist.

Pele’s revenge?

Leaving the subject of imports, what about focusing on returns? Whether you grew up here or visited once when you were 10, you know the warning against taking lava rocks, lest Pele unleash her wrath on you. Rampant run the stories of tourists mailing lava rocks in droves back to Hawaii with desperately apologetic notes, citing financial collapse, failed health or the loss of a loved one as the consequences of sneaking home a souvenir.

But is the legend true or just something tour guides made up to prevent depletion of natural resources? Do people really mail rocks back? The Kilauea Visitors Center on the Big Island won’t share how many rocks it receives, as “it’s private mail and we don’t give out those figures.” But Winfred Pong of the Hawaii Tourism Authority said the returned rocks on the Big Island are kept in a gallery on grounds where civilians aren’t allowed. The Volcano Gallery offers its private lava rock return service, as it believes “the return of your lava rocks and ‘your good luck’ deserve more respect and attention.” And the service comes with a request for a voluntary donation of only $15!

As for the tourism office itself on Oahu, Pong said he hasn’t received anything since December, but that waves of returned goods usually occur after television programs highlight the legend of Pele. Pong’s office also often receives non-lava rock souvenirs from all over the world, such as sand, cement rocks and even tiki, which is why Pong “think[s] people project their bad luck,” additionally citing that many objects are mailed back years after having being taken.

We want to respect the warnings and advice that are intended to keep this place healthy and beautiful. Just take everything with a grain of salt (locally cultivated and distributed Hawaiian salt, not stolen from anywhere).

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