Page 5 - MidWeek Kauai - Dec 21, 2022

Kurisu: Positively Influencing Hawai‘i’s Food Industry
FROM PAGE 4
He recalls his boss at the time, KTA CEO Tony Tanigu- chi, telling him, “Derek, when the sugar plantations go down, you become obligated to help (the community) because they helped to build KTA to what it is today.”
survives and our company moved forward, really heav- ily, to support our local busi- nesses and local people and local everything,” he says.
the longtime host of cooking demonstrations at HFIA’s Made in Hawai‘i Festival, which attracts thousands of shoppers every year.
age 16. Back then, he says, the application wasn’t a form and an interview — it was whether you could carry a 100-pound bag of rice.
At the time, Kurisu says, he couldn’t imagine a Hawai‘i without sugar.
Mountain Apple Brand has since expanded to hundreds of Hawai‘i-made products.
According to HFIA offi- cials, “Derek’s rapport with the chefs and enjoyment of the food engages the audience and allows them to share in the fun of Hawai‘i-made ingredients.”
“My father used to make me train,” he recalls. “We used to buy the rice and I used to carry it at my house so when I turned 16 and I applied I could carry the rice.
But Taniguchi’s prediction came to pass and then Tanigu- chi himself passed away.
Beyond Hawai‘i Island, Kurisu has twice chaired the Hawai‘i Food Industry As- sociation (first in 2006-2007, then in 2015-2016), making him just one of a handful of individuals to serve more than once.
HFIA marked its 50th anni- versary this year and it chose Kurisu as its 2022 Hall of Fame inductee. Officials cit- ed his generous and inclusive nature and his willingness to lend a hand.
“I learned from the founder (of KTA) that rice is a pre- cious food, so we had to treat it with dignity and respect. We couldn’t just shove it off on a cart, we had to hand carry it and show we had our blood and sweat and tears and ev- erything in this product. Those are the small kinds of values I learned.”
Derek Kurisu enjoys a laugh at the 2022 HFIA Convention.
PHOTO COURTESY HFIA
His journey with the com- pany and in the local food industry continues.
Kurisu worked with his successor, Barry Taniguchi, to make things happen.
Looking Ahead
Another newer initiative is his “Man & the Pan” series on KTA’s Instagram account. These are short video demon- strations in which Kurisu walks viewers through sim- ple recipes that require little more than a pan, a stove and a handful of ingredients.
“I went out there to try to create new businesses,” he says of his early outreach on behalf of Mountain Apple Brand. “All the existing busi- nesses, I went there to try to help them create products, (to) try to glue all of these food people together to become one big family.”
HFIA represents more than 200 retailers, manufacturers, distributors and brokers in Ha- wai‘i’s food industry.
“It’s humbling to be part of the Hall of Fame because all the other people in there were amazing people,” Kurisu says.
When local restaurants were forced to close during the pandemic, he invited them to do pop-up shops inside KTA’s flagship store in Hilo.
This isn’t as easy as it might sound. Some of these produc- ers may have seen each other as competition. Kurisu had to get them to see the bigger picture — with sugar gone, the community needed other economic drivers — and con- vince them to work together.
On the Shoulders of Giants
“Till today, the label still
Kurisu serves as the panel’s volunteer moderator. He’s also
The family-owned and op- erated supermarket has been in business for 106 years; Kurisu has been with it for 54 of those years, working under four Taniguchi family CEOs.
In this iteration, KTA in- vites a business to cook food for customers inside the store. Because there isn’t an actual food truck, he had signs made depicting a food truck.
After all, KTA and Kuri- su have always relied on the community for support and feedback. Without that, he says, they wouldn’t be where they are today.
Kurisu hangs out with his son, Blake, and wife, Georganne, on a family trip.
PHOTOS COURTESY DEREK KURISU
Kurisu (back row, second from left) and the late KTA CEO Tony Taniguchi (center, holding trophy) at a 4-H auction in 1970.
Kurisu (right) with the late George Yoshida, who hosted Seniors Living in Paradise. Since Yoshida’s passing, Kurisu has taken on the role of show host.
Broader Influence
“We’re competitors but we’re also focused on feeding Hawai‘i, we’ re also focused on making food affordable and available and safe,” Kuri- su says.
Among them are the late Tony and Barry Taniguchi, his former bosses at KTA.
His willingness to go above and beyond made his employ- ers happy as well. The Tanigu- chi family went on to support him through college — first adjusting his work schedule so he could study in Hilo, then helping him find a job in Honolulu when he moved on to University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa. After he graduated from UH’s College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Re- sources, they welcomed him back to the company.
“It’s still going on and it’s going stronger and stronger,” he says. “I think we got seven restaurants in our store. The thing I’ m doing now is called ‘in-store food trucks.’”
“I’m kind of running out of ideas of what to make,” he ad- mits, adding that suggestions are welcomed by messaging KTA’s Instagram account, @ktasuperstores.
Under his leadership, HFIA launched its Legislative Talk Story and Pau Hana panel, a now annual event that con- nects lawmakers with food industry leaders on priority issues.
It’s impossible to overstate the impact KTA has had on Kurisu.
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DECEMBER 21, 2022
KAUA‘I MIDWEEK 5