Flying food from mainland to Hawaii...what is NOT permitted?

[ScoopKona]

We prefer the papayas from Hawaii, the Mexican papayas have an off taste. The opposite is true for avocado, we have never been able to get those huge Hawaiian avocados to ripen before we leave

They're amazing. Like Haas but more buttery. I have 13 varieties of avocado growing here. And I'll take the Pepsi challenge with anything grown on the mainland.

The trick is to find someone who sells them "already mostly ripe." Most of my friends keep a milk crate in their truck with a dozen (that's all that will fit in a milk crate). They give them away because it's better than letting avocados go to the pigs and mongoose.

 

[davidvel]

Thanks.

I'll be happy if the packaging laws are changed and going forward, people who pay big bucks for Kona coffee actually get what they're paying for. Once that happens, farms will rise and fall on their earned reputation. I've never expected a big payday from this. (Even if a big payday happens, it will go to the larger, older farms who have been cheated far longer.)

No laws will be changed by a civil lawsuit. Kona coffee is over rated by Kona coffee growers.

 

[clifffaith]

No laws will be changed by a civil lawsuit. Kona coffee is over rated by Kona coffee growers.

Them’s fightin’ words!

 

[T_R_Oglodyte]

We prefer the papayas from Hawaii, the Mexican papayas have an off taste. The opposite is true for avocado, we have never been able to get those huge Hawaiian avocados to ripen before we leave

One thing I appreciate with both Hawaii and Mexico is the many varieties of the same fruit that are available - most particularly in the farmers markets (Hawaii) and mercados publicos (Mexico). In Hawaii, even Safeway carries local varieties that you seldom see on the mainland. You mention papayas, but that is equally true for mangos, avocados, guavas, bananas, pineapples, tomatoes.

The most glorious green onions I've had in my life were purchased at the farmers market at Kukui‘ula shopping center in Poipu last year. About eight years ago, we came across a vendor at the Kauai'i Community College farmers market who was selling coffee grown in the Moloa'a area. It was wonderful stuff - to my taste buds it far surpassed any 100% Kona I've had from anywhere on the islands (and I'm thinking primarily of tastings that I've done in the Kona area as well as coffee I've bought in local stores that give shelf space to island producers).

 

[T_R_Oglodyte]

No laws will be changed by a civil lawsuit. Kona coffee is over rated by Kona coffee growers.

Totally in agreement. Kona is to coffee like Napa is to wine. Without much effort, but with a bit of savvy, you can find coffees that match Kona for less than half the price. Personally, my favorite coffees are grown in Malaysia and Indonesia. When I was an avid coffee drinker, I would take a quality Sulawesi, brewed at proper strength and with a decent coffee maker, any time over any Kona I've ever tried.

Sadly, I've had to dial back my coffee consumption and coffee strength as part of managing blood pressure. I loved my bold, concentrated Indonesian brew, but it was clear I needed to give that up when monitoring showed that that morning cuppa was spiking my blood pressure by about 50 mm Hg.

 

[1Kflyerguy]

We do usually check bags, but only bring minimal food items with us. My wife drinks tea, and we bring along her fav tea bags, and a small electric kettle which is much fast than whatever the resort has. I also have a travel salt and pepper grinder. I may also bring a couple of microwave popcorn.. Pretty everything else we need we buy locally.

 

[StaceyM]

For Hawaii, definitely don't bring produce. There is also really good local fish and beef, so I wouldn't bring meat.

I never noticed any agricultural controls from to mainland to Hawaii, but you never want to travel to an isolated island with live plants, seeds or soil.

Kitchen Stuff:

• 4 "flour sack" kitchen towels
• 4 Plastic storage containers with lids from takeout food
• 2 flexible cutting mats
• Sharp knives - a small chef's knife and a paring knife
• Mini chip clips or binder clips
• Foil (if I know we're going to grill)

For "food", I usually bring things that I know I would have to buy a large quantity of the same stuff I buy at home, and then throw most of it away:

• Weekly "pill minder" with 7 different spices (that's a tip I got on TUG)
• Tea bags for iced tea
• Condiment packets or mini-jars of condiments I have on hand: 1-ounce quantities of mustard and jam, hoisin and hot sauce packets, etc.
• I always get there and think, "I should have brought some oil" but I haven't found a good way to transport a couple of ounces of oil.

Stuff I always travel with

• Starbucks Vias packets - those stay packed in my travel bag for all trips, I find they're better than 95% of hotel coffee.
• Emergency travel snacks: nuts or 1-oz packets of peanut/almond butter and dried fruit in case there are travel delays, someone is hangry, etc.
• Quart ziploc bags
• 1 jumbo ziploc bag (20-gallon) that can be used for laundry or wet swimwear

 

[BJRSanDiego]

• I always get there and think, "I should have brought some oil" but I haven't found a good way to transport a couple of ounces of oil.

I use the little airline liquor bottles that hold about 1.5 ounces and fill them with olive oil. I use the oil for grilling. Works great.

 

[ScoopKona]

I use the little airline liquor bottles that hold about 1.5 ounces and fill them with olive oil. I use the oil for grilling. Works great.

Film canisters work as well. And they have the advantage of not being mini alcohol bottles (which we stopped using when a brain-dead TSA agent demanded we couldn't bring them.)

But I don't bother bringing oil. I just buy a small amount of quality oil. I can always make Caesar dressing or mayo. So there's never any such thing as "leftover oil." Since I'm not shopping at Costco, WalMart or Safeway, I'm not going to be stuck buying olive oil by the 55-gallon drum.

 

[jehb2]

We cook a lot in Hawaii. I buy almost everything at Costco, occasionally Sams in Waikiki if we run out of something. And Don Quixote for small items I can’t get at Sam’s. There’s also Target for small items if need be. I do bring my spices with me that’s it.

 

[ScarletD]

Nalgene makes "leak proof" travel bottles of various sizes that are sold at The Container Store (and probably elsewhere online). I have a 4 oz bottle that works well for bringing cooking oil. Has not leaked on me yet, but it always flies in a plastic bag, just in case.

 

[SteveinHNL]

What? Tropical fruit is lacking and better in Mexico? Maybe @ScoopKona can point you in the right direction for your next trip. Did you show up at the end-of-day at a supermarket? It will be a sad day if I can't find good fruit in Hawaii.

Yeah, I'm not understanding this one. Scoop has it right, the best papayas and mangoes I have ever tasted are in Hawaii, and it is not close. Nothing wrong with the non-native fruit either, such as apples and oranges, although I'm not that interested in having them when there are locally grown fruits around. I don't mind stopping at Costco in Hawaii to buy some meats to throw on the grill, some greens and a bottle of salad dressing. I don't have much use for canned goods as we are usually only there for a week.

 

[SteveinHNL]

I buy direct from the ranchers -- which anyone can do if they visit the right farmer's market. It's about the same price as Costco, and I know where the money is going that way -- down the road from me. As for "twice as good," we'll have to agree to disagree on that.

In fairness, most folks are eager to get to their timeshare in Hawaii to start their vacay, rather than searching around for the right farmer's market. There are a few things I really want when I go to Hawaii, and those are available at the local grocery store. The rest I don't mind picking up on a short Costco stop.

 

[SteveinHNL]

Well hope you guys win and the lawyers don't take it all.

Lawyers really aren't interested in "taking it all," even if they do all the work and front virtually all the costs.

 

[SteveinHNL]

That is one of the things I miss the most when we moved from the Hamakua side of the island to Kohala. We had a a mac-nut orchard (200+ trees) and did not even have to dry and roast them. They were delicious plain after being husked. When we purchased the house, our real estate agent gave us a mac-nut cracker as a house warming gift.

Now at 600' (were previously lived at 2000'), we can grow figs and mangos without a problem, but no more macadamia trees. They do not thrive at lower levels.

My prior in-laws had a pretty extensive mac farm in Hilo

 

[ScoopKona]

In fairness, most folks are eager to get to their timeshare in Hawaii to start their vacay, rather than searching around for the right farmer's market. There are a few things I really want when I go to Hawaii, and those are available at the local grocery store. The rest I don't mind picking up on a short Costco stop.

Their rotisserie chicken is one of the very few loss-leaders left in this society. I never go to Costco without picking one up -- even though I could make better chicken on my own. I can't make it better for $5.

It's not like I'm dead set against Costco. I like real maple syrup as much as the next person. (Probably more than the next person.) But if there was a Costco in Turkey, India, or Botswana, I wouldn't go there as my first stop on vacation (if at all). I'm not going to those countries to eat Corn Dogs and Frosted Flakes. I can get that at home.

Hawaii has a great many things which people can't get at home. And they have a great many things which are superior to what people can get at home. (The tomatoes growing on the side of the road, for instance.) I have a hypothesis about why people go from the airport, to the rental car, to Costco/WalMart and buy their entire trip's worth of groceries in one go. But I have no way of testing this hypothesis.

 

[Tucsonadventurer]

I feel sorry for the tourists who -- when surrounded by the incredible food bounty of the Hawaiian islands -- head to Walmart or Costco and buy the same stuff they already get at home.

Bringing raw ingredients to Hawaii is sort of like saying, "I'm traveling to Germany. I'm going to pack as much beer as I can carry into my checked baggage."

Or, "Off to Italy. I'm going to pack all the Tombstone frozen pizza I can!"

Or, "Heading to China -- with a 50-pound sack of rice!"

I know some people who simply don't care what they eat. "It all ends up the same place." So they live on a diet of packaged ramen, Chef Boyardee, Hot Pockets and fast food. If someone like that goes on vacation, then, sure, why not just bring the cheapest stuff possible?

Instead, I'd go straight to a small, local market. Buy local fish, local produce, and Lum's Char Siu sauce (they should pay me for all the times I mention them). I'd buy some frozen coconut cream (every store has this), panko flakes and make some coconut mahi. Get some mac-nut pesto at a farmer's market to spoon over the mahi.

The best tomato I've ever eaten grows in Hawaii. The best fish, crab and lobster I've ever eaten grows in Hawaii. (Yes, crab and lobster at the aqua farm -- pumping water from 12,000 feet down for the perfect cold-water environment.) Best avocados. Best guava. Best papaya. Best mangos. Best citrus. And even for the things where Hawaii isn't the best (beef, for instance) it's still WAY better than most of the beef found on the mainland. It's not A5 Kobe. But it's better than what can be found at Piggly Wiggly.

Costco in Hawaii has quite a few items that are unique to Hawaii though. We are going for 7 weeks this summer so Costco is our 1st stop and then we do farmers markets and local stores in between

 

[SteveinHNL]

Their rotisserie chicken is one of the very few loss-leaders left in this society. I never go to Costco without picking one up -- even though I could make better chicken on my own. I can't make it better for $5.

It's not like I'm dead set against Costco. I like real maple syrup as much as the next person. (Probably more than the next person.) But if there was a Costco in Turkey, India, or Botswana, I wouldn't go there as my first stop on vacation (if at all). I'm not going to those countries to eat Corn Dogs and Frosted Flakes. I can get that at home.

Hawaii has a great many things which people can't get at home. And they have a great many things which are superior to what people can get at home. (The tomatoes growing on the side of the road, for instance.) I have a hypothesis about why people go from the airport, to the rental car, to Costco/WalMart and buy their entire trip's worth of groceries in one go. But I have no way of testing this hypothesis.

And even if your hypothesis were proven true (which it likely is at least when compared to some travelers), traveling is such a "to each his own experience," that some may be remarkably happy to watch the whales, enjoy the weather, and have a pina colada or two on the pool deck. The things that give you the most joy may not be the same as what gives the next person the most joy. I grew up and lived and worked 50+ years in Hawaii. I feel really familiar with the "bests" of Hawaii, including food. I have had what I consider to be some of the best local and Hawaiian foods to be found there. I've even buried and dug back up our own pigs and turkeys after overnight smoking in a rock lined imu. Yet I still enjoy going to a touristy hotel luau, even though the food doesn't begin to compare. In the end, it's so much about getting away and enjoying the place, even though you might not enjoy every single thing that the next person might have enjoyed in the place.

 

[ScoopKona]

it's so much about getting away and enjoying the place, even though you might not enjoy every single thing that the next person might have enjoyed in the place.

That's fine. And I said as much upthread -- there are many people who simply don't care about food. "It all goes the same place." I know several people like that -- I've worked with chefs like that. They don't care what they eat. Just fill the void and move on with life. I don't expect them to get anything other than something fast, filling and inexpensive.

I think it's more likely that most people who visit New York or Naples for the first time are going to want to try the pizza, and not just get Costco pizza. (At $10, it's a seriously good deal. I'm not suggesting it isn't. But it's also not New York/Chicago/New Haven/Naples pizza.)

Same with beer in Germany. Sure, you could go to Costco and get cases of Budweiser. And if someone is brand-specific for Budweiser ("I don't drink anything else! Budweiser or nothing for me!"), then that's a valid strategy. I'd want to at least try the local brewery's offerings. I know someone who went to France and ate three meals a day at McDonald's. That person had an aversion to food he couldn't pronounce. "I don't know what in it. So I don't want it. " And you don't have to go far in my family tree to find people who say, "Sushi? Where I come from, we call it 'bait.'"

And it all goes hand-in-hand with being a decent guest. If someone goes to a farmer's market instead of Safeway, Safeway isn't going to notice the loss of business. But the farmer will be thankful. If enough people do it, locals see immediate benefit to tourism. There will be fewer upside down flags and "Defend Hawaii" shirts. (There will still be some, though. Some of those guys are hard-core.)

I'm sure the woman who snapped her fingers at me in the grocery store didn't feel particularly welcome on that visit. Just a hunch. When I read people complain about how they were treated in Hawaii on various travel fora (I'm on several), I have to assume they are finger-snappers as well.

 

[Luanne]

And even if your hypothesis were proven true (which it likely is at least when compared to some travelers), traveling is such a "to each his own experience," that some may be remarkably happy to watch the whales, enjoy the weather, and have a pina colada or two on the pool deck. The things that give you the most joy may not be the same as what gives the next person the most joy. I grew up and lived and worked 50+ years in Hawaii. I feel really familiar with the "bests" of Hawaii, including food. I have had what I consider to be some of the best local and Hawaiian foods to be found there. I've even buried and dug back up our own pigs and turkeys after overnight smoking in a rock lined imu. Yet I still enjoy going to a touristy hotel luau, even though the food doesn't begin to compare. In the end, it's so much about getting away and enjoying the place, even though you might not enjoy every single thing that the next person might have enjoyed in the place.

This

 

[clifffaith]

I know someone who went to France and ate three meals a day at McDonald's. That person had an aversion to food he couldn't pronounce. "I don't know what in it. So I don't want it. " And you don't have to go far in my family tree to find people who say, "Sushi? Where I come from, we call it 'bait.'"

My father was famous for “Never had it, don’t like it”. It is our family joke. There was a breakfast where I’d made scones. I knew he wouldn’t take one, so I plated in the kitchen giving everyone a scone and whatever else I was serving. He picks his up, closely inspects it from every side, then says “What the hell am I supposed to do with this?!” Um, it’s breakfast and there’s butter and three kinds of jam on the table, what do you think you’re supposed to do with it? Wouldn’t even take a bite of the very scary bread item.

 

[Tamaradarann]

We've been to Hawaii many times over the years, our last stay in 2019 just ahead of the Pandemic and we have two weeks planned starting next week. Typically we stop at the Costco at each Island, purchase steak and chicken, a case of water and a few other items, then fill in the smaller items from the local grocery stores. Still we have found pricing to be 30 to 50% higher than the mainland generally.

We are flying Hawaiian Airlines and were thinking with the 50 lb suitcase limit we could add some food to bring us up to the limit and save some money as we typically pack light flying there. Thinking of cooking oil, Pam, spices, maybe some canned goods, tortillas, maybe a loaf of bread. Is anyone aware if any of these items are not permitted to be flown in with checked bags?

Also considering brining a Brita pitcher & reusable water bottles for us. What does the group mind say?

I'd say that since the supermarkets are expensive rather than bringing food to Hawaii I think that shopping at Costco, Sam's Walmart, or Target for most of your food keeps your costs down. Going to a farmer's market to get fresh produce is a way to shop local and get some excellent produce. We do occasionally go to a supermarket for a item or two that we need. We have spent our winters in Hawaii from 2009 to 2020 and have lived there since 2021 and this is how we actually live, and we do it without a car from Waikiki.

 

[ScoopKona]

My father was famous for “Never had it, don’t like it”. It is our family joke. There was a breakfast where I’d made scones. I knew he wouldn’t take one, so I plated in the kitchen giving everyone a scone and whatever else I was serving. He picks his up, closely inspects it from every side, then says “What the hell am I supposed to do with this?!” Um, it’s breakfast and there’s butter and three kinds of jam on the table, what do you think you’re supposed to do with it? Wouldn’t even take a bite of the very scary bread item.

I'm actually glad this is common. "The good stuff" costs enough as it is. Imagine what it would cost if everyone pushed the plate of Hot Pockets (or whatever) aside and asked themselves, "why the [censored] am I eating this [excrement]?"

People want to act as if the priority triangle didn't exist -- and they really can have it all. (And have it all without having to think about it.) With the priority triangle and the four agreements, that takes care of basically everything life throws at you.

 

[Luanne]

After out last trip and a couple of very bland meals we most likely will be bringing some spices with us next year.

 

[davidvel]

And the lectures from coffeeguy continue. If you don't think, eat and live like him, you are garbage.

And yet he eats a Costco chicken for $5, an unnatural incredibly processed chemical infused item. A 3oz serving has 20% of your daily sodium.