Page 4 - MidWeek Kauai - Dec 21, 2022

4 KAUA‘I MIDWEEK DECEMBER 21, 2022 KAUA‘I MIDWEEK
COVER STORY
PHOTO COURTESY KTA SUPER STORES
ployees and
The executive vice president of KTA Super Stores on Hawai‘i Island is known for his exuberant personality and passionate promotion of all things lo- cally grown and made.
You might begin to wonder if this even counts as work.
v
It’s apparent on his
But in truth, Kurisu, who turned 71 earlier this month, has done much to positively influence Ha- wai‘i’s food and grocery industry.
In 1992, as the last sugar plantations on the Big Island were winding down, he helped KTA
launch its Mountain Apple Brand dedicated to locally grown and made products.
SEE PAGE 5 Kuri PHO
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STORY BY
KAREN IWAMOTO
PHOTO COURTESY
Derek Kurisu (right) jokes around with chef Isaiah Badua of Roy’s Hawai‘i Kai at the 2022 Made In Hawai‘i Festival. Kurisu
is the longtime host of the event’s cooking demonstrations.
Derek Kurisu, Hawai‘i Food Industry Association’s Hall of Fame inductee, marks 50-plus years in the food trade, where he’s spent his entire career doing what comes so easy: promoting all things local.
Enjoying their time at the 2022 HFIA Convention are Derek Kurisu and his wife, Georganne. PHOTO COURTESY HFIA
HAWAI‘I FOOD INDUSTRY ASSOCIATION
Whether he’s greeting em-
W
customers, joking around with chefs at the Made in Hawai‘i Festival or taking officials on tours of island farms, Derek Kurisu al- ways appears to be hav- ing fun.
KTA’s private label — “Buy Mountain Apple products, please. Aloha!” — in the talks he gives to local business people and school students, and on his television shows Living in Paradise and Seniors Living in Paradise (chan- nel 129 on Spectrum and streaming on YouTube) — which he mostly shoots, hosts and edits himself.
over and tell him, “I heard your voice from the other aisle, and I knew it was you! I just had to come over and say hi.” Even the more reserved give in and flash a shaka for the camera.
cemail, which plugs
Sometimes people walk
Both shows usually fea- ture him cooking, enjoy- ing a meal or extolling a new or longtime product or service.
Supporting Local