Asparagus grown on the North Shore put Twin Bridge Farms on the map, and on the inaugural state Department of Agriculture Seal of Quality list.

Twelve companies were on that list in 2006; the SOQ marks its 10th anniversary this year with more than 70 members.

The program was created to “provide a reputable distinction to genuine, premium agricultural products grown and produced in the state of Hawaii,” said Yukashi Smith, economic development specialist with the Ag Department’s Agricultural Development Division.

SOQ products are often designated with a green, gold and white label, but the program is more than just a sticker. It helps bring attention to the products through cooperative marketing that stresses the buy-local theme.

“The SOQ program helps us to maintain our reputation of producing quality produce,” said Milton Agader, who owns and operates the farm with business partner Al Medrano, on about 300 acres split between Waialua and Haleiwa.

SOQ members must comply with the program’s 13 pages of administrative rules that ensure, for example, that the product is 100 percent made in Hawaii.

An annual application fee of $50 goes into a Seal of Quality account, not the state’s general fund, “so we have our own fund for SOQ marketing,” Smith said. Every year, the funding varies, and this year’s is paying for public relations services.

For example, Bennet Group Strategic Communications staged a marketing seminar for members and organized an exhibit at ChefZone in August, offering samples and putting retailers and restaurateurs in touch with SOQ members.

Exhibitors ranged from the large and well-publicized to small but ready for prime time, from Kualoa Ranch’s diversified agriculture operations and Naked Cow Dairy’s cheeses and butters, to Hawaiian Shochu Co. and Kihene Hawaiian Herbal Teas, with all sorts of products in between.

Once certified, companies can buy SOQ stickers, or use the logo in their package designs, for a fee. “The state prints 2 million at a time,” said Smith, and charges cost plus 10 percent. An order of 50,000 stickers would cost a member $130.

Members receive slick brochures specific to their products, which they can give out at trade shows, farmers markets and the like. The professional photographs taken for the brochures may be used on their websites or for other marketing purposes.

Each year, new members are invited to exhibit products for free as part of the SOQ booth at the Hawaii Lodging, Hospitality & Foodservice Expo, a July trade show staged in Honolulu.

SOQ members also can apply to be part of the Agriculture Department contingent at the Produce Marketing Association’s national trade show, held in various mainland cities, or at Tokyo’s FoodEx, the largest food show in Asia, Smith said. Ten to 12 Hawaii companies usually share booth space at that show.

Of the 12 inaugural members, six have dropped out, for various reasons. Some have gone out of business, or ownership and priorities have changed, “or it’s because of the nature of the business, they’ve had to change focus from local agriculture to sourcing outside the state,” Smith said.

Nalo Farms owner Dean Okimoto said he left the program five years ago, despite his decades of passionate buy-local advocacy.

“When they asked me to join, I joined mainly to help them, and Richard Ha (Hamakua Springs) did the same thing, joined them to give them some credence,” Okimoto said. Nalo Farms and Hamakua Springs already were well-known brands when SOQ took root.

He said he might consider rejoining the SOQ fold now that Nalo Farms is making honey and other value-added products. The program has added more solid brands and has “really helped some of the farmers, for sure,” he said.

While Twin Bridge Farms asparagus bears the SOQ sticker, many member products do not. But a visit to the Department of Agriculture website — sealofquality.hawaii.gov — does provide a list for shoppers who would like to use the SOQ designation as a guide.