The Atebara Potato Chip Company was founded by Raymond Atebara in 1936 on the Big Island in Hawaii. 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.

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, “Thats 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 un-hydrogenated cottonseed oil, which has no unhealthy trans fats.”

With the forming of Hawaii Island Gourmet Products, the company continues to use Hawaii Island grown produce whenever possible. We like supporting Hawaii Island Diversified Agriculture. Clyde says, Were growing taro and sweet potato of our own on a few leased acres on the Hilo coast. This windward coast of the Island of Hawaii 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 Hawaii, one thing that always comes to mind is family, or ‘Ohana. Hawaii 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.

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

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