| Noni ‘n’ Goats |
Who cares about the stupid beach when there are organic farms to be toured? Hang loose, just kiddin’! The island of Kauai does boast some of Hawaii‘s most iconic golden sands, but up on the North Shore, especially, you shouldn’t miss visiting these very Hawaiian farms.
Steve Frailey may be the most gung-ho organic farmer in Hawaii. The energy almost sparks off him as he shows off his sole crop: noni fruit trees, row after row. For thousands of years, he tells you, this wonder plant was carried by Polynesians throughout the Pacific as their all-around medicine cabinet. We’re talking for lumbago, dysentery, head lice, open wounds, even broken bones. “They just picked the fruit off the tree, and they ate it,” Frailey says.
Steve Frailey: noni man
Because of the unique process Frailey and partner Scott “SH” Jarvis have developed at Hawaiian Health Ohana, they have attracted believers from all over the world to this ancient healing art. Even pro football and basketball teams use their noni to treat muscle soreness and other chronic sports injuries. According to an article in a doctors’ magazine, noni’s “powerful constituents” fight skin cancer and infections, act as an antioxidant, antifungal and antibacterial agent, and contain all 9 essential amino acids and essential fatty acids. The fruit aids with sun exposure and skin damage and is effective against tropical skin diseases. “In an age of thinning ozone and global warming, a little noni makes sense,” the article concluded.
A fruit Band-Aid?
Frailey has thousands of noni trees at his certified organic property in Anahola. These prolific bearers have no natural enemies and produce year-round. The pale-yellow fruit—about the size of an ostrich egg, dimpled like a golf ball—is picked by hand, then left for a few days to ripen further. The deseeded fruit pulp is then dehydrated to create a fruit leather.
Unlike almost all other noni products on the market, which are juices, the leather offers the benefits of the whole fruit. It needs no refrigeration, and can be consumed or used as a sort of healing Band-Aid. He also creates lotions from the leather to rub on inflamed joints, pulled muscles and sore backs. No chemicals are used in the manufacturing, and the packaging is biodegradable or recyclable.
You can find the leather and lotions at natural foods stores and other retailers on the island (as well the mainland). Frailey will enthusiastically show groups of 10 or more around the farm and processing facility. Why not ask your innkeeper or concierge for help in organizing a tour?
It’s not just the cheese
Kunana means goat in Hawaiian
The only dairy on Kauai is just off the Kuhio Highway in Kilauea, on the lush North Shore. And the Wootons, the family that owns Kauai Kunana Dairy, are proof you can live off a small parcel of land here—if you muster the ingenuity. Bob and Louisa started their micro-dairy back in 1999, and today they milk goats twice a day to create acclaimed artisan goat cheese and goat milk products like soap, shampoo and hair conditioner (made from the milk’s whey). Their soft fresh cheese—available only on the island, or online—comes in flavors like garlic-chive and sun-dried tomato. They have been recognized for their green practices, though the dairy operation is not organic—they supplement the pure goodness of their pastures with conventional feed. But this family farm also produces certified organic fruits and vegetables. Ryan Wooton, Bob and Louisa’s son, is a master gardener; he oversees the bounty that is sold at farmers’ markets; his wife Sarah has expanded into baking (home-made granola and ginger snap cookies), chili-oil, pesto and salad dressings.
A visit with the delightful Wooton family, their immaculate operation and gentle goats can be arranged by appointment ($20 per person, children under 12 free). Or you can purchase their wares at the Hanalei (Tuesday, 2 pm; Saturday 9:30 am) or Kilauea (Saturday, 11:30 am) farmers’ markets.
Let us guide you to all things green & great in the Aloha State. Download your own copy of our award-winning e-guide, Green Traveler Guides Hawaii. We sleuth out travel you’ll love.
travel
green
