KCFA BOD Meeting
Nov.19, 2013
CTAHR Office, Kainaliu
Call to Order by at 3:11 PM
Present: T. Butler, C. Smith, K. Schweickhard, C. Coleman. L. Hanna, B. Corker, C. Bondera, Anita Kelleher and ML Moss
Guest: Steve Sakala, VP and Legislature Chair of HFUU
100% Kona coffee provided by L. Hannah. Thank you!
Dec. KCFA coffee to be provided by ML. Moss.
Minutes - Motion was made by ML. Moss to approve the Sept. minutes was seconded by C. Bondera. Motion passed.
Treasurer’s report - Treasurer reported on Holualoa Coffee and Art Stroll sales. Motion by C. Bondera to approve the Oct. Balance Sheet was seconded by A. Kelleher. Motion passed.
NEW BUSINESS
HFUU - David Case
1. HFUU seeks KCFA’s renewal of its Associate HFUU Membership and financial support with HFUU and the Kona Chapter as partners to achieve our mutual objectives.
A motion was made by ML Moss that KCFA renew its Associate Membership with HFUU for $3000 with $2500 to go to the state HFUU and $500 to the Kona Chapter contingent upon agreement to terms discussed by a sub committee and presented to the BOD. This was seconded by L. Hanna. Motion passed. This sub committee will consist of B. Corker, C. Bondera, K. Schweickhard and D. Case
2. HFUU Kona chapter will hold its annual meeting on Jan.23, 2014 to elect 2 new board members and other business.
3. A state Representative seat may become available and we will try to get a farmer elected or appointed.
4. It is time to renew annual membership.
OLD BUSINESS
Election Committee: 7 potential nominees for the board will be called.
Membership: A membership request will be declined and the annual dues returned because of the coffee blending practices of this business.
STANDING COMMITTEE REPORTS
Membership Report November 2013 Board Meeting
Report of members who have renewed or joined KCFA
Oct 13, 2013 to Nov 14, 2013
Jeana Connolly Holualoa, HI voting N (new)
Cheryl Buehring Franklin, TN associate N
Dominic Taylor Keauhoa, HI supporting business N
Shawn Steiman Kailua Kona, HI “ N
Richard Han New York, NY “ N
TOTAL MEMBERS 360 Voting 257 Assc. 55 S. Bus. 48
Geographical Identity Committee
Three important issues are worth mentions and considering. First is that again testimony was provided for the County Council regarding their consideration of Margaret Willes' Bill #113 which if passed (should be voted on during the meeting on Nov 19) would provide some enforcement and enactment components to the existing Coffee and Taro GMO protection County law that is in places.
Second is that as a member of American Origin Products Association (AOPA) it is worth noting that an annual membership was held on Nov 18, and discussions continued regarding working with the state departments of
agriculture association (NASDA) and perhaps with states where there are numerous GI products, as well as potential collaboration between AOPA and some aspect of the French system of GIs, and finally that the efforts to
hire an Executive Director for AOPA are still underway in an effort to turn the volunteer organization into one with paid staff as a means to grow and develop and have a recognized voice in political efforts. Third is that due to a logistical opportunity, the GI lead member (Colehour Bondera) will already be in Washington, DC at a training in early February, directly after the NASDA annual meeting. With support from KCFA he could attend the NASDA meeting. In order to change the airplane ticket and to stay in DC two extra days, along with associated transport and basic costs, it would be necessary to request $500 from KCFA to attend and participate.
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-Social Events – M.Moss and C. Coleman
Aloha Board,
The Events/Social Committee has been busy with the Coffee & Art Stroll which took place on Nov. 2. Several Board Members helped with this event and I would like to give them another big mahalo for helping whether behind the scenes with printing, website notices, etc. or actual volunteering during the event. They are Louise Hanna, Tom Butler, Kurt Schweickhard, Anita Kelleher, & Bruce Corker. It does indeed take a village to put on the Coffee & Art Stroll!
36 Farmers participated in the Stroll. We had several “first time” farmer participants which made the Stroll interesting and added to the excitement. A first time farmer, Fire Island Coffee, Sharon Kirkland & husband won the “People’s Choice” – which is unheard of. A first time participant??? Never. Fire Island Coffee is one of our farmers and we are thrilled for them. They served a cold-press iced coffee and it was indeed a favorite!
Also, a first for the Stroll, was the “Chef’s Choice” organized and suggested by Bruce Corker. Three chefs from “Coffee Belt” restaurants who serve 100% Kona Coffee added to the day’s excitement by tasting the coffee from the 36 farms and selecting the 5 coffees they would be proud to serve in their restaurants.
This was a very fun event, we had a record number of people attend and several farmers reported making the most money they have ever made at the event. I have agreed to be the event chair for next year.
This was the only Kona Coffee Cultural Festival event that KCFA participated in. The Stroll was the launching of our new “Sling” bag. Think Christmas. They are a wonderful bag and only $14. We still have Kona coffee jelly for sale, and burlap logo tote bags in a variety of colors.
We have a new shipment of burlap bags and a storage problem. If you have been waiting to place an order for burlap bags, please do so sooner rather than later. I will also place an order for 200 GrainPro bags.
We need to hit it hard for EXPO and get it going and that will be my focus now.
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-Legislative- B.Corker - November 19, 2013
1—Proposed Coffee Standards Amendments—Following the October 10 hearing in Kona at which KCFA members expressed concerns about adverse effects on coffee farmers from a number of the proposed amendments, the KCFA made an inquiry to the HDOA as to the status. The Department responded that it is working on a “post public hearing report” which may (or may not) be presented to the State Board of Agriculture at its November 26 meeting in Honolulu. The hearing report was described by the Department as “a summary of the public hearing testimonies, comments and recommendations. If necessary, some changes may be made to the proposed rules based on the testimonies, comments and recommendations. “ The Department gave no indication whether or not it will revise the initial proposal to address the adverse effects identified by KCFA.
2—County Council GMO Limitation—Colehour has continued to communicate KCFA’s support for Margaret Wille’s Bill No. 113. It is possible that a final vote of the Council may be taken on November 19.
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-PR/Newsletter- A. Kelleher
Sent out “The Independent Voice” to everyone. I encourage all Board Members to continue to send articles to Clare who does a fantastic job every month. When doing a Coffee Talk/Education presentation, please be sure to send all information to me, at least 10 days in advance so I can post it in the West Hawaii Today’s –About Town column.
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-Education/Coffee Talk– Colehour Bondera, Louise Hanna and Chris Coleman
The Coffee Talk NRCS Nov. 14, 2013
We had 12 attendees and received 9 evaluation forms which are summarized below . People were actively engaged in asking questions during the presentation.
CTAHR is paying us $200.00 for organizing and promoting the seminar and allowing them to co-sponsor the event. This payment was unexpected because when we organized the event the CTAHR staff was not sure if their education grant was going to be continued, but it was. They provided all of the AV equipment and set it up and down.
Content 5 4 3 2 1 0
Information is useful 6 1 1 1
Practical to my needs and interests 5 2 1 1
Useful visual aids and material 5 1 3 1
Presentation
Instructor was knowledgeable about the topic 6 1 1 1
Instructor’s presentation style 5 1 2 1
Instructor covered material 6 2 1
Instructor responded well to questions 4 3 1 1
I would request that we send a $100.00 Honorarium to our speaker, Jessica Schmelz. I have not mentioned this to her. It was at my request that she agreed to give the lecture, NRCS did not seek us out to host a lecture.
Sincerely, Louise Hanna
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Adjourned at 4:30 PM
Minutes recorded by Sec. T. Butler
