From Atebara’s to Hawai’i Island Gourmet Products

The Atebara Potato Chip Company was founded by Raymond Atebara in 1936. It did not take long for Atebara potato chips to become a local favorite. During World War II when the rationing of potatoes threatened the family business, Raymond relied on locally grown Taro to keep the supply of snack chips available to the community. The 1946 tsunami destroyed the original factory, but this did not stop Raymond from relocating the business to Manono Street, where the chips are still made today. In 1979, Raymond retired and son Walter took the helm. He soon introduced Sweet Potato chips, and later, Shrimp flavored chips were also added to the variety of snacks offered. Walter ran the company for over 20 years following the Atebara tradition of making quality products.

In 2002, the Atebara Potato Chip Company was purchased by two local business partners not wanting something so uniquely “Hilo” to disappear. Lana’i born Clyde Oshiro, who moved to Hilo in the early 1970’s, and son-in-law Nimr Tamimi, a Hilo native, formed Hawai’i Island Gourmet Products. They decided to maintain the special “Kettle Cooked” process that ensures Atebara’s potato, taro, sweet potato, and shrimp chips to be light, crispy, and so wonderfully tasty. Clyde and Nimr introduced new products including yellow and blue corn tortilla chips. Cookies and chocolates that incorporate crunchy bits of chips soon followed, and research and development continues on new varieties of chips, cookies, and chocolates.

Purple sweet potato and taro are healthier alternatives when looking for chips to snack on. Sweet potatoes and taro are rich in fiber and vitamin B6. They are also a good source of iron, calcium, protein, and complex carbohydrates. “Keeping our tasty chips as healthy as possible is very important to us,” Says Nimr, “That’s why we go through a couple of extra steps during production to cut the amount of oil in our finished products. We also use only unhydrogenated cottonseed oil, which has no unhealthy trans fats.”

With the forming of Hawai’i Island Gourmet Products, the company continues to use Hawai’i Island grown produce whenever possible. “We like supporting Hawai’i Island Diversified Agriculture.” Clyde says, “We’re growing taro and sweet potato of our own on a few leased acres on the Hilo coast.” This windward coast of the Island of Hawai’i is lush and has rich volcanic soil perfect for growing taro and sweet potato. The dry land taro is grown pesticide-free.

When you think of Hawai’i, one thing that always comes to mind is family, or Ohana. Hawai’i Island Gourmet Products is still a family business, owned by Clyde and his son-in-law Nimr. Nimr’s father, Dr. Tamimi, a retired UH-Hilo Agriculture professor, assists with the farm. Clyde’s sons have worked in the factory and his daughters are involved with marketing and webpage content. All family members are great product tasters, and they do it for free.

Hawai’i Island Gourmet Products can be found all over Hawai’i. Their tasty chips are served in Hawai’i’s finest hotels and sold in numerous stores. Grownups and kids from all over love to snack on the finest quality chips produced on Hawai’i Island. All products are available at the retail gift shop located at 717 Manono Street, Hilo, Hawai’i 96720.



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