Growing company began with fungus found on Maui

We’ve heard a lot of controversy about genetically modified organisms over the last few months, and this Christmas we thought it appropriate to feature a Maui-hatched company that could revolutionize raising organic food both here and on the mainland.

The genesis of the company was a chance discovery by the late Maui scientist Bryan Hiro­moto in 1995. Hiro­moto, a University of Hawaii-trained biologist, learned that a fungus that had inadvertently contaminated a bag of mushroom nutrients meant for his Haiku farm knocked out pests called nematodes. Further research led Hiro­moto to discover that a variant of the mixture had a powerful effect on plant growth.

The source of the fungus was traced back to an unlikely habitat: eucalyptus trees.

The finding led to the establishment of a company called Grower’s Secret. Developed at the company’s research and development facility in Puu­nene, Maui, Grower’s Secret’s products are the first of an entirely new category of organic farming and agriculture products called "plant growth energizers."

CEO Chaz Berman said the product could transform the world of agriculture because it uses natural compounds instead of petro-fertilizers made from synthetic chemicals that harm the environment. Berman said his products are organically based, derived from edible mushrooms that are fermented in a solution of Maui pineapple juice, pureed papaya and molasses. Berman says his products do no less than "begin to address the need for sustainable agriculture in Hawaii and the rest of the world."

So exactly how do Grower’s Secret products work?

Wesley Chun, chief science officer at the company, said the concoction encourages a plant to speed up its metabolism, thus allowing it to accept more water and nutrients. Chun, a plant pathologist and UH graduate, said that in addition to accelerating plant growth, the product helps plants resist pests and disease, reduces crop cycles and increases the shelf life of fruits and vegetables.

The company, which is looking for investors, is hoping to grow big time.

"We want to be an organic version of Miracle Gro, which is part of Scotts Miracle-Gro, a company with approximately $3 billion in annual sales," Berman said. In five years, he said, Grower’s Secret is projected to have $100 million in sales and could expand to 20 employees in Hawaii.

The line of products includes a fertilizer for tomatoes and vegetables, a lawn care product, a flower growth product and a general-purpose formula. The line is marketed across the mainland both to commercial farming operations as well as consumers. Berman said he was in negotiations with natural-food giant Whole Foods.

You can apply it with a sprayer, and it’s completely nontoxic, Berman said. He said you could even drink it without ill effects. (Note that he doesn’t recommend this!)

Our Tech View team had a chance to test the product in several gardens on Oahu, and the preliminary results were encouraging. In one case, after just several weeks of spraying flowers, several plants that had never bloomed are sending out buds like crazy. In another instance, a pepper plant that had stopped bearing fruit months ago also started flowering after the first spray. Vegetables that had been sprayed, such as collards and kale, exhibited a rich green color and appeared to be growing rapidly.

We intend to provide a detailed report in a future column.

It’s not often that a local information technology or life sciences company has a shot at making it big on the mainland. Hawaii can produce great science, and Grower’s Secret is a perfect case in point.

Discoveries can come from the most distant settings on the planet. In this instance a humble fungus growing on the back of an Upcountry Maui eucalyptus tree could be the key to an entirely new form of agriculture.

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Mike Meyer, formerly Internet general manager at Oceanic Time Warner Cable, is chief information officer at Honolulu Community College. Reach him at mmeyer@hawaii.edu.