Newsletter of the Kona Coffee Farmers Association September 2014
PO Box 5436 Kailua Kona Hawaii 96745 USA www.konacoffeefarmers.org info@konacoffeefarmers.org
Contents
Legislative Update
Keep Spraying that CBB
Kona Coffee at Mauna Kea’s new Coffee Bar
Burlap and GrainPro Bags
What is Hiding in Your Cup of Coffee?
Annual Harvest Barbeque Coming Up
Need a Coffee Nap?
Recipe – Coffee Jello for Dessert
Editor- Clare Wilson
Early Harvest – mid August 2014 Green Coffee – late August 2014
1600 foot elevation North Kona 1900 foot elevation South Kona
Photo by Anita Kelleher Photo by Cecelia Smith
Legislative update
Support Brenda Ford’s Resolution Opposing 10% Coffee Blend Fraud:
On August 21, Hawaii County Council Member Brenda Ford (South Kona, Ka’u) filed a resolution calling for the State Legislature to adopt truth-in-labeling for Hawaii-grown coffees. The resolution recites the history of the State’s shameful failure to protect the reputation of Hawaii’s premier specialty coffees and asks for immediate legislative action to stop further degradation of that reputation caused by 10% blends. It is a terrific document. Click here to read the full text.
The resolution will be considered at a committee hearing at the Hawaii Civic Center in Kona on Tuesday, September 16. The time of the hearing has not yet been set. We will send out notice when the time has been announced.
Brenda advises, “We will need lots of testifiers”. Every Kona coffee farmer should make every effort to attend the committee hearing and testify in support of this resolution. Its adoption by the County Council will provide important support for our State representatives in their efforts to put an end to the consumer fraud and economic damage to coffee farmers that result from the deceptive marketing of 10% blends.
Please thank Brenda Ford for her steadfast and continuing support for coffee farmers.
Meeting with the Agriculture Attaché from the European Union:
Giulio Menato, the Agriculture Attaché from the EU to the United States, and his family were hosted by the KCFA Legislative and Geographical Identity Committees in Kona on August 7. Despite dire warnings of Hurricane Iselle, the Menato family joined Lisa and Bruce Corker and Colehour Bondera for a tour of the Corkers’ coffee farm in Holualoa–and for a discussion of European and American perspectives on promoting and protecting regionally identified products like Kona Coffee, Champagne, Idaho Potatoes and Parmesan Cheese. Mr. Menato praised the work of KCFA in vigorously defending the “Kona Coffee” name, and singled out the KCFA boycott of Safeway for deceptive labeling as an example from which other American producer organizations can learn. This unique opportunity to meet with a high level EU diplomat resulted from KCFA’s membership in the American Origin Products Association (AOPA) with which Mr. Menato maintains close ties. Colehour and Bruce are members of the AOPA’s Board of Directors.
submitted by Bruce Corker
Keep up your spraying!
Now that the coffee picking season has started, it is tempting to stop spraying Fungus. Don’t do it! Now is the time to get those beetles that are on the move. I say this from personal experience. In September of 2012 I thought that we had done a good job in reducing CBB infestation and decided that we could stop spraying. Wrong! By November 2012 damage had drastically increased and we were never able to recover.
The time to stop spraying is when the dry season is in full swing and humidity levels are low. Beauveria bassiana needs moisture and high humidity to be effective. In the 2013-2014 season, we continued our spray program (every month) and were able to maintain control through the season.
B.bassiana Grant
If you got your B. bassiana Voucher more than 30 days ago, you may go online, Login and get another Voucher for 50% off up to 2 gallons of Botanigard or Mycotrol.
submitted by Bob Smith
100% Kona Coffee At the Mauna Kea’s “Plumeria Coffee Bar”
This spring Mauna Kea Beach Hotel opened the Plumeria Coffee Bar in its classically designed lobby. This European style coffee bar is proudly featuring 100% Kona Coffee supplied by local growers. Guests and visitors to the Mauna Kea can enjoy a range of coffee offerings prepared by skilled baristas–from brewed 100% Kona to espresso, café latte, and more—all of which can be savored while enjoying the lobby’s magnificent views down onto the beach and the Pacific Ocean.
The farms providing coffee to the Plumeria Coffee Bar are Kona Lisa, Wakefield & Sons, Kona King, Huahua Farm, and Blue Corner Farm.
“We are proud to offer genuine Kona Coffee–Hawaii’s premier heritage agricultural product—to our guests from around the world. And we are equally proud to be supporting Kona’s coffee farmers and the almost 200 year tradition of growing coffee on Hawaii Island,” said Food & Beverage Buyer Barry Kawamoto. He also notes that for a number of years the resort’s signature restaurant, The Manta & Pavilion Wine Bar, has offered Rancho Aloha 100% Kona Coffee on its breakfast menu.
When you next visit the Mauna Kea, KCFA members are encouraged to stop by the Plumeria Coffee Bar to enjoy a cup of real Kona Coffee—and to thank the Mauna Kea for serving our product.
Note: The Mauna Kea Beach Hotel opened July 24, 1965, and was the first resort on the Kohala Coast—built by financier Laurance Rockefeller. In 2015 the Mauna Kea will hold a series of events to celebrate its 50th anniversary.
Baristas Norma Keliikipi and Isabella Ramos with Food & Beverage Buyer Barry Kawamoto in the Plumeria Coffee Bar.
[Photo by Vicky Kometani]
—Submitted by the Branding Committee
Need Bags???? We’ve got ‘em!
KCFA Burlap Bag KCFA Grain Pro
High quality, durable Burlap Bags or Grain Pro “moisture barrier” cable-tie Bags, for long term storage.
Go to www.KonaCoffeeFarmers.org , Login as Member and then go to KCFA Store. KCFA Burlap bags $3 each and Grain Pro bags (info here) for $3.75 each. (KCFA is the sole local distributor for Grain Pro bags)
–Submitted by the Fundraising Committee
The Alarming Thing that’s Probably Hiding in Your Coffee
By Zahra Barnes
A strong cup of joe (or two) can be a trusty get-through-this-crazy-day helper–but there may be more than coffee beans and a jolt of caffeine hiding in your cup. “Fillers” like wheat, soy beans, barley, rye, acai seeds, brown sugar, corn, and even sticks are often present in coffee grounds, according to new research presented this week at the 248th National Meeting & Exposition of the American Chemical Society.
Why are these extras ending up in your cup? Since things like drought and plant disease have decreased coffee output, these unnatural additions can be used to help the coffee go further–and boost waning profits for the companies that make it.
While these fillers are largely harmless, there is potentially cause for concern. “Wheat and soy beans are two of the major food allergens listed by the FDA,” says Joan Salge Blake, M.S., R.S., a clinical associate professor of nutrition at Boston University. The thing is, it’s not like you’re going to see a wayward stick floating in your mug; it’s all ground up together, so it can be hard to tell if you’re getting straight coffee bean or a few unwelcome extras.
Thankfully, science is on the case. Brazilian researchers are working on a process to evaluate the makeup of coffee and determine whether it’s counterfeit before it reaches consumers. They have a vested interest in this field of research since Brazil is a top coffee-producing country, making 55 million bags of it per year. (The 2014 projection stands at 45 million, which is about 42 billion fewer cups.)
The researchers hope to use liquid chromatography, a powerful process that identifies the different elements of a liquid, to suss out how many fillers are in coffee. Based on the prevalence of impurities, scientists will have a better idea whether they’re dealing with small amounts that occur in nature and slipped through the sorting process–or large amounts that were purposely introduced to add to the bottom line.
“With our test, it is now possible to know with 95 percent accuracy if coffee is pure or has been tampered with,” Suzana Lucy Nixdorf, Ph.D., lead researcher at University of Londrina in Brazil, said in a statement.
So, what to do until the test is perfected? “Unless you’re very allergic to one of the fillers, there isn’t too much cause to worry,” says Salge Blake. If you are allergic, you may want to steer clear of coffee until researchers have more information to report. And if you’re not allergic but are still concerned about fillers, it stands to reason that you’d be better off buying whole coffee beans and grinding them yourself (either at the grocery store or at home) since you’ll avoid the potential for anything extra being mixed in without your knowing about it.
–Submitted by Tom Butler
September 28, 2014 MARK The Date on Your Calendar!
Annual Harvest Barbeque for New and Longtime KCFA Members!
All KCFA members and their families are invited and encouraged to come to the annual KCFA Barbeque to be held on Sunday, September 28th from 11:30-4 pm at the “Church Lot” Picnic area, across from beautiful Honaunau Bay/Two Step. There is free but limited parking so carpool if you can.
KCFA will supply hot dogs and buns and paper products etc.so please RSVP and let us know how many of you are coming so we get the right amount of stuff. RSVP by email to Marylou@cuppakona.com or info@KonaCoffeeFarmers.org or call 329-4035 by September 21, 2014.
We will have a fascinating guest speaker. Tammy Duchesne is the Superintendent of Puuhonua O Honaunau National Park as well as the Kaloko-Honokohau National Park. She will speak about the cultural history of both parks as well as the watershed that sustains the fishpond in north Kona.
Come and enjoy the beautiful ocean scenery, talking story with your fellow farmers, as well as learning some fascinating Hawaiian history.
Members are asked to please bring a salad, or dessert or something to go along with the hot dog menu, and also bring your own drinks. Rumor has it that KCFA might be offering beer too, but not confirmed yet. More details to follow but do RSVP. Mahalo and see you there!
–Submitted by KCFA Social Committeee
Scientists Agree: Coffee Naps are Better than Coffee or Naps Alone
If you’re feeling sleepy and want to wake yourself up — and have 20 minutes or so to spare before you need to be fully alert — there’s something you should try. It’s more effective than drinking a cup of coffee or taking a quick nap.
It’s drinking a cup of coffee and then taking a quick nap. This is called a coffee nap.
It might sound crazy: conventional wisdom is that caffeine interferes with sleep. But if you caffeinate immediately before napping and sleep for 20 minutes or less, you can exploit a quirk in the way both sleep and caffeine affect your brain to maximize alertness. Here’s the science behind the idea.
How a coffee nap works
To understand a coffee nap, you have to understand how caffeine affects you. After it’s absorbed through your small intestine and passes into your bloodstream, it crosses into your brain. There, it fits into receptors that are normally filled by a similarly-shaped molecule, called adenosine.
Adenosine is a byproduct of brain activity, and when it accumulates at high enough levels, it plugs into these receptors and makes you feel tired. But with the caffeine blocking the receptors, it’s unable to do so. As Stephen R. Braun writes in Buzz: the Science and Lore of Alcohol and Caffeine, it’s like “putting a block of wood under one of the brain’s primary brake pedals.”
Now, caffeine doesn’t block every single adenosine receptor — it competes with adenosine for these spots, filling some, but not others.
But here’s the trick of the coffee nap: sleeping naturally clears adenosine from the brain. If you nap for longer than 15 or 20 minutes, your brain is more likely to enter deeper stages of sleep that take some time to recover from. But shorter naps generally don’t lead to this so-called “sleep inertia” — and it takes around 20 minutes for the caffeine to get through your gastrointestinal tract and bloodstream anyway.
So if you nap for those 20 minutes, you’ll reduce your levels of adenosine just in time for the caffeine to kick in. The caffeine will have less adenosine to compete with, and will thereby be even more effective in making you alert.
Experiments show coffee naps are better than coffee or naps
Scientists haven’t directly observed this going on in the brain after a coffee nap — it’s all based on their knowledge of how caffeine, adenosine, and sleep each affect the brain independently.
But they have directly observed the effects of coffee naps, and experiments have shown they’re more effective than coffee or naps alone in maximizing alertness.
In a few differentstudies, researchers at Loughborough University in the UK found that when tired participants took a 15-minute coffee nap, they went on to commit fewer errors in a driving simulator than when they were given only coffee, or only took a nap (or were given a decaf placebo). This was true even if they had trouble falling asleep, and just laid in bed half-asleep during the 15 minutes.
Meanwhile, a Japanese study found that people who took a caffeine nap before taking a series of memory tests performed significantly better on them compared to people who solely took a nap, or took a nap then washed their faces or had a bright light shone in their eyes. They also subjectively rated themselves as less tired.
Interestingly, there’s even some evidence that caffeine naps can help people go for relatively long periods without proper sleep. As part of one study, 24 young men went without proper sleep for a 24-hour period, taking only short naps. 12 of them, who were given just a placebo, performed markedly worse on a series of cognition tests, compared to their baseline scores. 12 others, who had caffeine before their naps, managed scores roughly the same as their baselines for the entire day.
Photo by Greg Hirson
How to take a coffee nap
Taking a coffee nap is pretty straightforward. First, drink coffee. Theoretically, you could drink another caffeinated beverage, but tea and soda have generally have much less caffeine than coffee, and energy drinks are disgusting. Here’s a good database of the amount of caffeine in many types of drinks.
You need to drink it quickly, to give yourself a decently long window of time to sleep as it’s going through your gastrointestinal tract and entering your bloodstream. If it’s tough for you to drink a lot of hot coffee quickly, good options might be iced coffee or espresso.
Right after you’re finished, immediately try to go to sleep. Don’t worry if it doesn’t come easily — just reaching a tranquil half-asleep stage can be helpful.
Finally, make sure to wake up within 20 minutes, so you don’t enter the deeper stages of sleep, and you’re awake when the caffeine is just starting to hit your brain.
Voila: the perfect coffee nap.
–Submitted by Kally Goschke.
Coffee Jello From Tasty Kitchen
http://tastykitchen.com/recipes/desserts/coffee-jello-2/
by TanyaG.
Ingredients
· 1 envelope Unflavored Gelatin, 0.25 Ounce Packet
· ¼ cups Cold Water
· 1-¾ cup Strong Hot KONA Coffee
· ¼ cups Granulated Sugar
· ⅛ teaspoons Salt
· 1 teaspoon Pure Vanilla Extract
· Whipped Cream And Finely Ground KONA Coffee Beans, Optional For Garnish
Preparation
Put gelatin and water in a medium-sized bowl and allow gelatin to soften for a few minutes. Add coffee and stir until gelatin is dissolved. Stir in sugar, salt and vanilla extract. Pour into an 8 x 4-inch loaf pan or dish and chill in the refrigerator until firm.
Cut into cubes and spoon into small dessert glasses. Top with whipped cream and sprinkle and distribute with finely ground coffee.
Note: For a firmer jelly, use 1 1/2 envelopes unflavored gelatin.