About Local Hawaiian Produce
Our Story
We are a family farm on Oahu dedicated to cultivating a diverse variety of fruits and vegetables, grown using natural and sustainable methods. We believe that eating healthy should be easy and delicious. That's why we're committed to providing our customers with the freshest and most flavorful local produce available. Delivered directly to you on a weekly basis on Friday.
Our Story
At Local Hawaiian produce, we are passionate about providing you with the freshest and highest quality produce. Our commitment to sourcing locally ensures that you receive the best nature has to offer.
Farmer Babs
Dave's "partner in crime" is his mom Barbara, aka "Farmer Babs". She started farming as a toddler, helping her grandpa in the family garden in New Jersey. She also worked with Dave on other farms throughout the years. After retiring as a dental hygienist, Babs started a retirement project growing vegetables on an acre of land in Kahuku. From that farm, Farmer Bab's sold produce through Farm-Link Hawaii to high-end Waikiki restaurants; to Let's Grow Farms CSA, and now brings her expertise to Local Hawaiian Produce. She was just awarded $5000 as a "micro grant for food security" by the USDA to increase production of local produce to local families. Woohoo! Dave's dad, Lloyd, a retired IT director, is our handsome delivery guy. He's our web master and biggest cheerleader as we build the new farm in fertile soil on a compound of all organic farms near the beautiful Waianae Mountains, Polo field, and Dillingham Airfield.
Farmer Dave
Dave has taken agriculture courses at UH Manoa and UH Hilo, He got his BA degree from Thomas Edison State University and has lived permanently on Oahu for over 20 years. Farmer Dave runs an orchard on Kamehameha school's land in Punaluu and a 5 acre organic compound in Mokuleia. Dave and his family are teaming up to provide weekly produce bags to Oahu. Organic certification is pending.
Dave has taught school gardening classes at Kuhuku Elementary School. When Dave is not gardening, you might catch him as a background actor in any of the numerous tv shows and movies filmed on Oahu. He enjoys playing his ukelele at the open mic nights in Honolulu. Dave has been active in the community as an elected member of the North Shore and Koolauloa Neighborhood Boards and ran twice for city council.
What We Grow
Tomatoes (cherry & regular), cucumbers, eggplant, peppers, beans (have seeds inside)
Carrots, radishes, beets all grow in the ground.
Red and green lettuces such as Batavia, Butter, and Romaine, rainbow chard, kale, spinach, pac choi, cabbage, arugula, asian greens (leaves)
Basil, parsley, cilantro, dill, chives, broccoli, cauliflower
Sunflowers, Zinnia, Celosia, Marigold (attracts bees for pollination and looks pretty)
Orchard fruits and produce from the Punaluu farm and other trusted organic local farmers.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
Please reach us at FarmerDaveBurlew@gmail.com if you cannot find an answer to your question.
What types of fruits and vegetables do you sell at Local Hawaiian Produce?
We cultivate a wide variety of locally grown fruits and vegetables including ( but not limited to) oranges, lemons, bananas, tomatoes, lettuce, carrots, kale and much more! Availability depends on the season and weather conditions.
Are your fruits and vegetables organic?
We follow USDA organic produce standards, but not all of our produce is certified organic. We are currently in the process of getting our Mokuleia farm certified!!! We do NOT use synthetic fertilizers, herbicides or pesticides to provide you with fresh nutritious produce.
Do you offer delivery services?
Free delivery services on the island of Oahu is included. Delivery is on Fridays.
What's in the weekly produce bag?
That all depends on what is ready for harvest that week. We harvest at the peak of freshness and flavor. Sometimes we do not know what will be available at time of order.
Got Any Tips?
Farmer Bab's Favorite Cookbooks
How to Cook Without a Book by chef Pam Anderson (Amazon)
Eat This... It will Make You Feel Better! by Dom DeLuise (Amazon)
Hawaiian Produce CSA Cookbook by Chef Adam & Sunny Golbert (www.plantationtavern.com)
Tip #1
Growing food is truly a miracle! Vegetables are a lot like people: everything starts from a tiny seed. You never know what you will get and no one is perfect. If you grew a thousand radishes, no two would be exactly alike. Amazing!! Commercial growers discard a stunning amount of produce that is not "pretty" enough or does not fit into their packing boxes. If you find that there are slight blemishes on the produce that you receive or a hole or two in a leaf (your guarantee that they have not been sprayed with toxic chemicals) it is still very edible. We do our best to give you the "prettiest" product. We are on a mission to increase the nutrient density (brix) of the crops.
Tip #2
Most produce will be washed but you should still wash it yourself. Tomatoes do not like to be refrigerated, everything else does. If the tomatoes are not fully red, give them a few day to ripen up on the counter. Refrigerate herbs in a container of water with the plastic bag cover. If you cut the tops off the radishes, carrots and beets, they can keep for a long time in the fridge. The tops are edible (such as carrot top pesto). Greens can often be perked up with 20 minutes in a large bowl of cool water if necessary.
Tip #3
Google is always ready to give you lots of new ways to use produce if you need help. "Once a week" cooking is one strategy to make meal prep quicker. Make three dishes (mains or sides) every week in one session so you can get dinner on the table quickly with a few additions.