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Alexander G. Fiesta is produce manager for Down to Earth market in Kahului, Maui. Established in 1977, Down to Earth is a Hawaii-based natural foods chain with one store in Maui and five in Oahu. Serving 90,000 customers each year, the retailer has annual sales of $46 million, and it features a wide variety of organic produce. Fiesta joined OPN for a conversation about why carrying organic produce is so important to Down to Earth, the unique sourcing challenges posed by the company's island location, and more.
How did you get started working in the produce industry?
Before I began my career as a produce manager here at Down to Earth Kahului in Maui, my wife and I started our own produce farmers market stand in 2013 on Kaunakakai, Molokai (also in Maui). Then, after two years, we opened a local organic health food store called Fiesta Market Place. Our goal was to provide healthy and local fresh produce to our customers.
Down to Earth in Kahului, Maui
How long have you worked at Down to Earth, and what drew you to work there?
I’ve worked for Down to Earth Kahului as a produce manager since June of 2019. What drew me to work here is Down to Earth’s mission to provide our loyal customers the very best of local and organic produce—it’s very similar to the mission of my own previous health food store!
What percentage of your department’s produce is certified organic?
About 80 percent is certified, and the rest is from farms that use organic methods but lack certification.
Alexander G. Fiesta, Produce Manager, Down to Earth in Kahului, Maui
Why is it important to Down to Earth to carry organic produce?
Ever since Down to Earth was founded in 1977 in Wailuku, Maui, we have been dedicated to supplying organic, natural, and plant-based foods. This has been our mission for over 40 years because we know organic food is the best choice for the health of our families and communities. We love supporting local organic farmers, knowing that our support encourages them to keep growing organically and that it may inspire other growers to become organic too. More acreage of organic crops means cleaner water, healthier soils, a more sustainable food system, and greater food security.
"What drew me to work here is Down to Earth’s mission to provide our loyal customers the very best of local and organic produce—it’s very similar to the mission of my own previous health food store!" -Alexander G. Fiesta
What percentage of your organic produce is local? And can you tell us about a local farm that you work with?
About 45 percent of our organic produce is local. We really strive to build relationships with all of the farmers we work with because we prefer consistency rather than a few deliveries here and there.
One of the local farms I source a lot from is Coca Farms, LLC in Kula, Maui. Down to Earth has been working with them since 1999, and they do a great job! They grow a wide variety of certified organic vegetables as well as some tropical fruits and strawberries. I always request that their produce be harvested on the day it’s delivered to our store to preserve freshness—it’s something I encourage all my local farmers to do.
Down to Earth's organic produce cold case
When it comes to the non-local organic produce that you carry, are there unique sourcing challenges that Down to Earth faces due to its island location?
Yes, it is challenging to bring in food from the mainland due to rising shipping costs, the loss of goods when containers aren’t refrigerated enough, products damaged in transport, delays in shipments, and many other problems associated with long-distance shipping. These impediments increase the price of foods coming from the mainland.
"We love supporting local organic farmers, knowing that our support encourages them to keep growing organically and that it may inspire other growers to become organic too. More acreage of organic crops means cleaner water, healthier soils, a more sustainable food system, and greater food security." -Alexander G. Fiesta
Down to Earth tropical produce selection
Do those challenges motivate you to source more locally?
Absolutely! It is very important to Down to Earth and to our customers to get the freshest, most recently harvested produce because of the greater health benefits and better taste. But there are so many other benefits from sourcing from local farms—closer relationships with the growers, directly supporting organic production in Hawaii, and growing our local economy. Bringing in goods from Hawaii also has less of an environmental impact than sourcing from afar, and less plastic packaging is needed, which is important to us.
What distributors does Down to Earth work with?
At the Down to Earth Kahului location, I work closely mainly with Charlie’s Produce and Veritable Vegetable. I also work with Earl’s Organic Produce and UNFI Fresh (formerly Albert’s Organics) when Charlie’s and Veritable are out of an item or don’t have the quantity I need.
Down to Earth located in Kahului, Maui
Have you noticed any trends in organic produce sales over the last year or several years? Are there any items that are particularly popular among your customers?
I have seen a huge increase in organic produce sales, especially as a result of this COVID-19 situation that we are in. I’m glad that many of our customers are now doing their best to be as healthy as possible.
Being that we live on a tropical island, many of our customers’ favorite items are our local organic exotic fruits. There are so many items to mention! But in terms of current seasonal fruits, the favorites are dragon fruit, persimmon, rambutan, longan, lilikoi (passion fruit), avocado, and papaya.
"It is challenging to bring in food from the mainland due to rising shipping costs, the loss of goods when containers aren’t refrigerated enough, products damaged in transport, delays in shipments, and many other problems associated with long-distance shipping. These impediments increase the price of foods coming from the mainland." -Alexander G. Fiesta
How does Down to Earth stay competitive with other retailers that offer organic produce in Hawaii?
Down to Earth provides one of the largest (if not the largest) percentages of organic produce in Hawaii. Local and organic is our number one preference, followed by organic, and then local. Even for local non-certified-organic produce items, we only accept those that follow common organic farming practices. We totally understand that due to the cost of organic certification, our smaller farmers may not be certified, but we carefully analyze these farms to make sure they meet the basic organic standards, such as being 100-percent non-GMO and not using chemical pesticides or fertilizers.
Down to Earth organic vegetable display
How has the COVID-19 situation been affecting Down to Earth, particularly its organic produce program?
There was definitely a dip in overall store sales, mostly because fewer people were eating restaurant and deli foods at the beginning of the pandemic (and our deli makes up a large portion of Down to Earth’s sales). But since everyone has been spending more time at home, there has been a lot more cooking going on, which we love! Our produce sales have more than doubled—and have possibly even tripled.
Our customers tend to be health conscious in general, but since COVID, we have noticed more interest from them in terms of why organic is important. They’re asking great questions like “Is organic healthier for you?” and “What is considered organic?”
Down to Earth's organic vegetable cold case
We love educating people on these topics. We let them know that choosing organic foods helps you to avoid ingesting chemical and pesticide residues found on conventionally grown fruits and vegetables. In addition, research shows that foods grown organically have a better nutritional profile than those grown with non-organic methods. And organic foods are a better choice for our environment too! Pesticides used in non-organic farming are linked to declining populations of bees, butterflies, fish, birds, and more.
Furthermore, overuse of chemical fertilizers contaminates groundwater supplies and damages the health of the soil. In contrast, organic farming methods help conserve soil fertility and biodiversity naturally by replenishing soils with compost and mulch and by choosing farming techniques known to improve the health of the entire ecosystem. All of this is information we love to share with our customers!
