About Town | 3-16-15

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Assistance available for farms with wind damage

Assistance available for farms with wind damage

Financial assistance is available for farmers and ranchers who have debris to remove or conservation practices to repair as a result of the high winds that occurred Jan. 2 and 3 in Hawaii and Honolulu Counties.

Eligible producers will receive cost-share assistance of up to 75 percent of the cost of the approved practice, as determined by the Farm Service Agency County Committee.

Producers may apply requesting an appointment with the Farm Service Agency Honolulu County Office at 483-8600, ext. 2. The office will take Emergency Conservation Program applications for both Hawaii and Honolulu counties. Applications are due March 31.

More information on Emergency Conservation Program and other disaster assistance programs is available at local Farm Service Agency offices and at fsa.usda.gov/hi.

Food safety class offered in Kona

TOBE Co. Food Safety is holding a ServSafe Certification Class April 20 at King Kamehameha’s Kona Beach Hotel.

The class begins at 8 a.m. and most students will be finished with the exam by about 5 p.m. Registration is required.

Since TOBE Co. is an approved trainer in the Employment &Training Fund program, 50 percent tuition assistance may be available for those who qualify.

For information about possible assistance or to register, call Tom Frigge at 235-0797 or email tfrigge@tobecofoodsafety.com.

Display of 1,200 pairs of sunglasses creates smiles in Waimea

An upcoming Firehouse Gallery display will celebrate Aunt Betty, who owns more than 1,200 pairs of sunglasses and is recognized throughout Waimea when she wears them. Her collection may be featured in the Guinness Book of World Records, but first, each pair must be photographed. The gallery is inviting the public to choose a favorite pair of sunglasses and have their picture taken while wearing them.

Those interested may stop by Firehouse Gallery opposite the Chevron gas station in Waimea’s Historic Corner from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday through March 29.

Hawaii Lowline Cattle Co. becomes Certified Grassfed

The Hawaii Lowline Cattle Co. has become the first farming business in Hawaii to become Certified Grassfed by Animal Welfare Approved. This is the only certification in the U.S. that guarantees food products come from animals fed a 100 percent grass and forage diet, raised outdoors on pasture or range for their entire lives, and managed according to the highest welfare and environmental standards on an independent family farm.

Rick and Haleakala Sakata and Dwayne and Tammie Cypriano of the Hawaii Lowline Cattle Co. have been producing grass-fed and finished Lowline Angus cattle on their ranch since 2008.