Got Aloha for a Teacher?
I'm waiting at the Kahului Airport for my connecting flight and I'm hungry. What are my choices? Burger King, CPK, Pinkberry (yogurt), and the sports bar.
I know, for myself, I could have planned ahead and packed a meal to have control over my later food craving. What about the hundreds or thousands of other consumers that pass through this airport. The mainland travelers don't really have the luxury of packing a meal that would survive a 5 hr flight.
Part of the challenge we face in shifting our consumption to our local producers, we need to ensure the selections our businesses offer reflect this movement. If a fountain machine only has spouts for Coke, Sprite and Dr Pepper, how is a consumer suppose to make a sound choice? It's not only hearts and minds, but equipment and menus.
Energy
Food
Comments posted prior to adopting Facebook comments.
How great would it be if there was a local fruit and veggies salad bar option at all Hawai'i terminals? The only fruit you can get right now seems to be the boxed pineapples. Or since we are paying a premium for airport convenience anyway, sell 100% Kona or Ka'u coffee instead of Starbucks?
I wonder if the folks in charge of airport concessions would be willing to do a trial run/pop-up restaurant. San Francisco made the shift to featuring local businesses in their airport terminals, and I'm sure travelers to and from the Hawaiian islands would be stoked to have localized options here!
Good journal! Traveling is the absolute worst for good food choices, I think -- my guess is that the big conflict in better eating is between convenience and conscientiousness, and when you're off-balance, in a new place, and in a rush (all elements of travel), it's a losing battle for conscientious consumption.
Kelli is traveling this week as well, and to her credit she made sure to pack some healthy, dense foods (mostly high protein or high fiber bars) just in case. I always forget that, but I need to take a page from her book. Preparedness seems to be the key, whether we're two miles from home or two thousand.
Good take on equipping consumers, Eathan. I agree that even the most inspired, educated consumer will struggle if the only choice is between the least of nutritional "evils."
There are two aspects to airport concessions that can be potentially changed to make this real. First is the state concession law that can require food vendors to use locally sourced food. Since making such a change generally doesn't effect the present concession award state vendors have, the second would be getting food vendors to voluntarily commit to a certain percentage of locally sourced food is another way -- or at least an interim measure. I don't know the success of the changes to the state procurement code (the twin of the state concession law) that called for locally sourced food in state procurements.