A diverse collection of producers will showcase their added-value food products and locally-sourced gifts at the “Biodiversity-Friendly Local Product Showcase” on payday Thursday, December 16 at Palasia Hotel from 11 am until 6 pm. A special Buyer Preview for stores, hotels, gift shops, and wholesalers will be from 10 to 11 am.
Registered producers include those making added-value food products, such as Carol Emaurois, whose company Carol’s Special makes jams, juices, sauces, and baked goods from fruit and taro she grows. Minae Brel from IMPAC will showcase cookies made from local fruits, noni, and tapioca, and breads made with paste from kukau and brak. Ngaraungiang Womens Group will sell a promotional size of Demok Stock. “When you have a farm or taro patch, you care more about the surrounding environment and the traditional ways of cultivation. You contribute to the enhancement of the environment and the cultivation of culture and the community,” says Carol. Minae from IMPAC described how she started making cookies in 2002 because there were no souvenirs to sell to tourists. Roberta Louch will showcase uleld, the Palauan delicacy coconut candy, as a way of “sharing and preserving our cultural and traditional practices.”
Producers making gifts include Jayna Kasiano, the young artist behind SinceShorely YourXo. “One man’s trash is another man’s treasure,” says Jayna, who finds glass discarded on beaches in Angaur and turns them into unique jewelry. Other jewelers include Jacob Yangilmau of KinYang Jewelry, and several carvers who make products with coconut shell. Jacob promotes coconut jewelry so as to “stop selling turtle shell products.” Matsko Taro and Dilchur Ruluked will showcase tet (bags) and other woven items made from pandanus, which is abundant in Kayangel.
Several woodworkers will showcase products from sustainably harvested btaches, meduu, mahogany, and other woods, including Janice Tarkong Cooper, Dwight Kolual, Telbiil Ngiraked, and rehabilitating prisoners. Janice makes wood bowls and souvenirs from unclaimed wood, saying “Nature has its own story.” Telbiil describes himself as “I’m just a guy who loves arts and Palauan stories. I started carving storyboards 5 years ago and just fell in love with it.” Artists from the Koror Glass Craft Center will showcase amazing gifts made from recycled glass.
“Creative-preneurs” working with BNM and the Palau Chamber of Commerce will showcase and sell Art for Fashion, Pottery, Weaving, Painting & Printing, and Carvings. Musicians and music producers will also showcase their products and perform.
Producers should call 488-6212 right away to secure a spot in the showcase.
The event is organized by the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, and the Environment (MAFE’s #RespectProducers campaign) and the Palau Chamber of Commerce, in partnership with Palau Visitors Authority and Belau National Museum with financing from GEF and UNDP.