tribal1209
Kava Enthusiast
How much has the price of Kava gone up or down across the years in terms of USD?
Price of Kava
- Thread starter tribal1209
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kavamehameha
Magnum's 'awa drinking bird
I don't know the amount, but the price has definitely gone up in the last few years. And still it seems that it will go on this way for a while.
tribal1209
Kava Enthusiast
If the price is going up why do you think it is? Is it done out of necessity or out of a desire for profits with increased demand?
Alia
'Awa Grower/Collector
There are lots of reasons but recently I've been visited by kava farmers and kava vendors from various regions of the Pacific who report 1. greatly increased demand out pacing plantings; 2. storms, etc. in Melanesia; and 3. it is worth learning/understanding that kava/'awa/sakau farming is hard work! Proper washing technique and processing are not easy either so it is better for the farmer, etc. that they make a bit more.
Kojo Douglas
The Kavasseur
Kava is a kind of "perfect storm" when it comes to astronomical prices. It can basically only be grown on remote, tropical islands with limited land. It is susceptible to pests and diseases (particularly Noble varieties). It grows in an area that gets battered by cyclones, hurricanes, earthquakes. It has a low demand on international markets, and must be shipped in small batches. It has been dragged through the mud false claim after false claim. It has a taste that prevents it from generating a lot of demand. It takes years to grow one plant, and the yields are quite low.... etc. etc.
kasa_balavu
Yaqona Dina
I personally know three Fijian farmers who harvested their last kava in 2016 and have turned their back on the crop altogether. In all three cases it was due to them being fed up with theft, which has risen dramatically since Cyclone Winston caused prices to rise.
You tend to a field for years, dreaming of the house you'll build or of sending your kids to university. A tropical cyclone comes along and damages part of it. Luckily most of it was only defoliated. Prices rise as other kava farmers were even less lucky and had their crop destroyed, leading to a shortage. Then the pilfering starts. Soon half your crop is gone, with losses of USD$90,000+.
You decide you've had enough. The tears aren't worth it. You'll stick to farming taro.
It's a serious problem. The higher prices are a double-edged sword for farmers.
Mildly Interesting Kava Fact™️️: The current President of the UN started a kava farm when he was posted to Taveuni Island as a civil servant in the 70's. He didn't get a single shell of kava out of it; the entire crop grew legs and walked off in the night. And that was before kava was a significant commercial crop in Fiji.
You tend to a field for years, dreaming of the house you'll build or of sending your kids to university. A tropical cyclone comes along and damages part of it. Luckily most of it was only defoliated. Prices rise as other kava farmers were even less lucky and had their crop destroyed, leading to a shortage. Then the pilfering starts. Soon half your crop is gone, with losses of USD$90,000+.
You decide you've had enough. The tears aren't worth it. You'll stick to farming taro.
It's a serious problem. The higher prices are a double-edged sword for farmers.
Mildly Interesting Kava Fact™️️: The current President of the UN started a kava farm when he was posted to Taveuni Island as a civil servant in the 70's. He didn't get a single shell of kava out of it; the entire crop grew legs and walked off in the night. And that was before kava was a significant commercial crop in Fiji.
Kavafied
Kava Vendor
Absolutely...a lot can happen in 4-5 years. Most of my family back in Eua, Tonga feel this way too. They'll farm enough Kava on excess land as a true cash crop and focus most of the farmland on a quicker turnaround options like Kalo and Manioka. With such limited land in Tonga...I get why they have to think this way.
tribal1209
Kava Enthusiast
Do you hear that Kava vendors? Keep your prices low or the kava farmer gets shafted!
tribal1209
Kava Enthusiast
However one can buy 30 Bud lights at your local grocery store, for $16. Or hell even a 40 or tall can for super cheap as well.
Where's my $1.50 can of 9% Malt Kava?
Where's my $1.50 can of 9% Malt Kava?
Kojo Douglas
The Kavasseur
The side effects of alcohol are so dismally destructive, unhealthy, and terrible for society that it's a wonder it wasn't banned centuries ago. That being said, I'm off to the pub to watch Chelsea!
Alia
'Awa Grower/Collector
I overlooked that problem, which has been here in Hawai'i also. Are some Kava farmers in Fiji able to have their homes by their Farms?
Myk
Kava Enthusiast
What's your point ? You could drink all 30 of them and not even remember the 30 seconds where you felt almost as good as a couple of good shells makes you.
kasa_balavu
Yaqona Dina
Indo-fijian smallholder farmers sometimes grow kava near their homes, yes, but it's not that common. Usually areas near the home are used for market/vegetable crops that need to be watered and tended to daily.
Most village (iTaukei) farms though are far (often many miles away) from their homes.
GussWest
Kava Enthusiast
Here's an analogy.
The difference between $20 and $60 pounds of kava is like the difference between schwagg and kind bud. Provenance, quality, effects, and after-effects all carry thru this analogy.
Try them both and you know where the extra money went. But, both options have a place in the free market.
I tried some of that cheap crap when I got started. Know why no one talks about Best Fiji Kava (Tahal Enterprises)? Because they sell adulterated crap kava. The latest report from Vanuatu confirms my suspicions.
If I'm going to pay for premium, then I want the best. @GHK and other vendors here provide the best Kava available to the Western market. Period.
Add to that the sheer variety of super-fresh, quality kava available at my fingertips with a known chain of custody and, for me, it is a no-brainer.
Good luck on your kava journey. Glad you could join us!
The difference between $20 and $60 pounds of kava is like the difference between schwagg and kind bud. Provenance, quality, effects, and after-effects all carry thru this analogy.
Try them both and you know where the extra money went. But, both options have a place in the free market.
I tried some of that cheap crap when I got started. Know why no one talks about Best Fiji Kava (Tahal Enterprises)? Because they sell adulterated crap kava. The latest report from Vanuatu confirms my suspicions.
If I'm going to pay for premium, then I want the best. @GHK and other vendors here provide the best Kava available to the Western market. Period.
Add to that the sheer variety of super-fresh, quality kava available at my fingertips with a known chain of custody and, for me, it is a no-brainer.
Good luck on your kava journey. Glad you could join us!
We posted about this a few months ago. https://blog.bulakavahouse.com/2016/09/30/current-kava-shortage-means-customers/
Rising prices to consumers are about rising prices to importers. Period. We didn't all get together and decide to start making greater profit. Profit as a percentage of revenue has actually dropped pretty dramatically for us as we haven't increased prices to customers at the rate they've been increased to us by farmers and exporters. Our Fu'u from Tonga nearly tripled in cost to us over the last year. We raised the price pretty dramatically, but obviously couldn't triple it. Add in the cost of testing for all the things the FDA requires us to test for (which unfortunately many vendors still don't do), meeting packaging and processing standards, and you have a pretty expensive product. Hopefully market forces will win out eventually and farmers seeing high export prices will grow more kava, eventually bringing up stocks to a point which will then force them to lower prices to a more reasonable level to compete.