Are Hawaii residents that crazy for milk? (Hilo, Volcano: hotel, price)

[HiloDiver]

This topic sure has taken twists and turns!!!

[OpenD]

Originally Posted by DebbyDiver

This topic sure has taken twists and turns!!!

Interesting discussions can do that...

To me, the underlying question is, why are so many people in Hawai'i willing to pay very high prices for _______ (fill in the blank), which has to be shipped in from the mainland, rather than switching to some other food, that can be sourced locally for a more reasonable price?

I guess the answer lies somewhere in the realm of the psychology of food. People grow up with certain food choices that get imprinted on their emotions, and then going forward they feel deprived if they don't get those foods at some reasonable interval. And since so many residents of Hawai'i grew up somewhere else, there are a lot of people at any given moment walking around jonesing for something or another that they used to eat all the time back in ________ (fill in the blank).

And the most universal of those habituated emotional food connections is probably cows milk, because in the US it is almost universally served in large quantities to children. Then as adults many of us carry that habit forward without really thinking much about it, even when it stops making much sense. I have a friend who goes through a couple of gallons a week, despite the fact that he has a milk allergy and it gives him colitis. I think he's nuts, but he says he just really likes milk. Go figure.

So anyway, since milk is heavy and perishable and most of it has to be shipped in, it's expensive in Hawai'i, yes. Bread is also expensive, because most of the ingredients have to be shipped in. Almost anything in a package and with a national brand on it has to be shipped in.

And all of it, milk and everything, finds a ready market in Hawai'i, even at elevated prices, because so many people's basic food tastes were formed somewhere else.

At least, that's my take on it.

[HiloDiver]

Interesting post, OpenD! You are right. When I moved to this island, I had to alter my tastes significantly in order to not overpay for less-than-fresh items. I'd read posts from people whining about food costs, and locals would reply that the key is to "eat local".

[7th generation]

Originally Posted by whtviper1

$2.50ish depending on where you get it and if it is on sale.

What? I've got a can here that I sell at my place....12 oz. for $4.69.

Might have to make a trip to stock up!

[hotzcatz]

Maybe it gets cheaper if you buy it in case lots, 7ThGen. There was the Hawaii labelled Spam several years ago. It had a special label - I think it was primarily yellow and was only sold in Hawaii. That one would sell for a lot of money to folks on eBay who collect Spam memorabilia. For the folks who eat spam a lot, they generally go for whichever is the least expensive. We get the occasional Spam musubi at the store and I think there might be one or two of those specially labelled cans around, but other than that, we aren't a big Spam household. Mostly because the stuff is about fifty percent fat! Tasty fat, though.

[OpenD]

In case anyone missed it in the stores and still wants to buy it, the No Ka 'Oi Hawiian labelled Spam is available online from the Spam Shop for $3 a can.

Product Information

They also have all the other varieties, and the exciting Variety 12-Pack! It's wonderful for gift giving.

http://store.spam.com/Shop/ProductList.aspx?Category={505D2888-EF00-4C99-BDFE-4AACCF5CE0E6}

[MickeyE]

I just finished a can of Spam . Very tasty. A 12 oz. can is $2.59 here. Also, they have the single serving at $1.19. It's just the right size slice to fit a slice of bread. Brown it up in a skillet, make a sandwich, maybe with a little mustard, and enjoy!

Mickey

[Kawena]

I like milk just not an everyday thing, sometimes a bowl of raisin bran or i have it with some cookies. You know what milk's best friend it?? OREO's!!!

Its not that hawaii is crazy for milk I think you got that wrong its more like the Feds...


Food police target organic foods in California! - YouTube

[OpenD]

That headline is misleading, as is the story. What they were after was raw, unpasteurized milk, which is banned from interstate retail traffic by federal law. According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), raw milk is responsible for most dairy related disease outbreaks today, and raw milk is 150 times more likely to cause disease than pasteurized milk.

CDC: Raw milk to blame for most dairy-related disease outbreaks - HealthPop - CBS News

28 states permit at least some retail sales of raw milk within their borders, but Hawai'i does not.

[KauaiHiker]

This is an interesting thread with many facets.

With all due respects, DebbieDiver, even if you don't drink milk it seems a little odd to keep claiming you didn't know how prevalent milk was in US culture. Maybe you don't watch TV either, but if your mainland friends all talk about it, you're being a bit oblivious to keep saying "oh well, we don't drink that, it won't affect us, what's the whole deal?" What makes me go hmmm is that you didn't think enough to ask those people why milk was so important to them, or why they thought it was so important in Hawaii.

And believe me, the price of milk will affect you. As mentioned, it reflects the general cost of living for various reasons, and when it goes up, it means that everyone's cost of living is going up. That means other food or goods might cost more too (eg refrigerated foods because electricity keeps going up and up), and more importantly people will have less money to spend on other things, perhaps the things that keep your family (or your neighbors) employed.

FWIW, we're a low-milk to no-milk family as well. My wife and I are both European in outlook, so we do cheese and yogurt instead (when not trying out a dairy-free diet), with a bit of milk for cooking. Oddly, milk is one of those things Europeans buy in bulk in the "ultra-high pasturized" boxes and keep for months, opening one when needed (like most of the soy and almond milk in the US). Like TigerBeer said, our kid also drove our milk purchases. When my daughter was younger and wanted real milk, we bought Big Island milk to support the local dairy--until the Japanese radiation scare.

As far as milk alternatives, we switched to soy milk for the occasional cooking need. It wasn't significantly cheaper than milk until Costco came along with organic 8-packs at $1.50/liter. The organic stuff should be GMO-free, but can you really trust the labelling on anything from China? Then we too quit the soy for the same hormonal reasons that was mentioned and do organic almond milk for $3/liter from the health food store (Costco has it sometimes too, but not much cheaper).

For dairy cream, we have subsituted coconut cream in everything and never looked back (for butter we use olive oil). We started with the cans of organic coconut cream at $2-3 per can. Recently got a vitamixer and make the cream ourselves from medium-old coconuts. Found a guy who sells the coconut water to restaurants and sells us the meat for cheap (only in America is the nutritious part practically thrown away). So we have fresh, locally sourced coconut cream for ourselves.

For pudding, just make Hawaiian haupia instead of clinging to your mainland ways. Or make tapioca pudding with watered down coconut cream--that's one of our favorites.

Slight correction about the sugar: A&B on Maui is still going strong, though G&R is winding down on Kaua'i (last harvest still in the fields, new fields not replanted). As for rum, I always wonder why it wasn't developed here back in the day. Was it something to do with the territorial status or statehood requirements? Was it something to do with the missionaries or the Asian influence? Or was it some sort of overboard prohibition like the one on gambling here? That said, there are relatively new ventures making small amounts commercially on Maui and Kaua'i.

If you go to the smaller farmer's markets that aren't frequented by tourists (and you no longer look like a tourist), the prices are significantly cheaper than the stores. If you go back regularly and get to know the vendors, then you get the deals (the extra produce added to your bag after paying). You can also get to know roadside vendors and fruit stands that have good produce and good deals.

As openD wrote, you can get your calcium from leafy greens and your vitamin D from sunshine, so the farmer's market covers both of those.

DebbieDiver wrote: "I'm so sad that it's almost impossible to get good-tasting apples here." Red flag on that one right there. Thanks to the daily Hawaii airlift, we're better off, but I predict you're a Costco member soon.

As for raw milk in Hawaii, you have to go into a cow co-op to get some since retail sale is prohibited.