HAWAII - Key Persons
Chris Speere's experience includes 38 years of culinary industry expertise, food product and recipe development, curriculum development and grant management. Mr. Speere's most recent accomplishment (2015 - 2020) was the development of University of Hawai'i Maui College's Maui Food Innovation Center (MFIC) which became the first institution in the state of Hawai'i to provide food manufacturing facilities, consultation services and educational training to local food entrepreneurs.
Chef Eric Faivre was born and raised in France and has been calling Hawaii home for the past 30 years. He has been a Chef since the age of 18 and strongly supports the farming community on his island of Maui. From his early childhood, he experienced the art of food preserving with his family and is a firm believer in the benefits of continuing the process here in Hawaii.
Jane is the creator and "alchemist" of Hawaiian Goodness, LLC, a boutique farmers market outlet for gourmet dehydrated fruit and fruit products using locally grown produce. Both Jane and her assistant, Nicole Tai, are certified by Hawai'i Master Food Preservers and conjure up dehydrated fruit recipes for unique island flavors with a local flair. Her aim is to support the local agricultural industry by showcasing a variety of tropical and exotic fruits through fun and healthy value added products. Jane is currently a co-instructor for HMFP Certification and Vice President for the organization bringing you the methodology, art and science behind food preservation.
Ken first started canning in the mid 1950s under the guidance of his Aunt Lucille who preserved the produce from her farm in Indiana. As long time Executive Director of Hawai'i Tropical Fruit Growers (HTFG) he heard from many growers and producers on all Hawai'i Islands about the need to preserve. Ken decided to go back to the University of California and train as a Master Food Preserver educator under Pat Malone and Chef Ernie Miller. Bringing the program to Hawai'i, he found funding unavailable with the University of Hawai'i Hilo's extension service and decided in 2012 to develop the program through HTFG. In 2020 HFMP was able to form its own 501c3 and develop its own certified kitchen in Kona. Ken is the primary instructor for the HMFP certification class and is President of the organization.
Job Titles:
- President of Hawaii Tropical Fruit Growers
Mark Suiso is President of Hawaii Tropical Fruit Growers and owner of Makaha Mangoes. He believes that food can be produced at every location in Hawaii. It's just a matter of what grows best in a microclimate. Then it is a matter of making the best use of that production be it fresh or in value added products.
Paul De Filippi is a food industry researcher, regulatory specialist and entrepreneur. He has managed Mauka Vista Farms LLC, a small scale fruit business on the Island of Maui, since 2015. He became certified with the Hawaii Master Food Preservers in order to create value-added food products from the fruit produced at the farm. He loves to make preserved fruit products.