Authentic Ni‘ihau-shell-lei bill approved by state Legislature

Freshman state Rep. Jon Riki Karamatsu, a distributor of locally made products, announced this weekend the passage by the state Legislature of his House Bill 2569, relating to Ni‘ihau-shell products.

The bill, which now sits on Gov. Linda Lingle’s desk for approval or veto, prohibits the sale of seashell items with a description or label using the term “Ni‘ihau” unless the item contains 100 percent Ni‘ihau shells and is made entirely in Hawai‘i.

Specifically, the bill would prevent businesses from using the term “Ni‘ihau” on their products if their products: (1) do not comprise of seashells harvested from the island of Ni‘ihau, its waters, or beaches; and (2) are not fabricated, processed, or manufactured entirely within the state. In addition, this measure allows labeling that indicates the percentage of Ni‘ihau-shell content if the item contains at least 80 percent Ni‘ihau shells and is made entirely in the state, he said.

During his floor remarks during final reading on the House floor last weekend, Karamatsu, D-Waipahu-Waikele, said, “The Native Hawaiian Ni‘ihau-shell-product businesses are known for their craftsmanship and selection of pristine shells. “The policy behind this measure is to protect Hawai‘i businesses, especially Native Hawaiian businesses, from being taken advantage of by companies fraudulently using the term ‘Ni‘ihau’ for their products,” he continued.

“After all, customers pay hundreds, even thousands, of dollars for Ni‘ihau-shell products. Hawaiian cultural products are becoming more and more popular in the global economy as ‘Hawai‘i’ in itself is a brand name.

“Besides retail businesses, with e-commerce businesses on the Internet, the potential for abuse is even greater,” he continued. “Therefore, I created HB 2569 to help protect our Hawai‘i businesses, especially those owned by our Native Hawaiian brothers and sisters.”