Wootens Produce of Kauai

Nandi and John Wooten at their farm near Anahola. Daniel Lane photo

Two of my favorite farmers are John and Nandi Wooten, of Wootens Produce of Kauai. Nandi, with a ready smile and easy laugh, is an excellent cook. At market, she furnishes clever tips about exotic ingredients while John plays with children, laughs at his own jokes, and cheerfully explains the virtues of jackfruit. He’s also very smart, and after interviewing him for MidWeek Kauai, he changed the way I bought avocados.

John grew up playing in a neighbor’s orchard in Southern California. A fascination for exotic fruit took root, and as a teenager, he became a farmer at a subtropical fruit farm.

In 1995, the couple moved to Kauai and began growing tropical fruit on a 20-acre farm near Anahola. Today, the farm’s garden rotates seasonally, and includes thirty varieties of avocado, as well as jackfruit, soursop, breadfruit, Meyer lemons, cilantro, basil, parsley, Indian curry leaf, spring onions, lettuce, kale, collard greens, carrots, eggplant, beets and fennel. Continue Reading →