Something’s Very Fishy On Mililani Farm

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(top photo) A tank full of coveted hobby fish at Kodama Koi Farm. (above) Brothers Hidenobu and Taro Kodama. Photos courtesy Kodama Koi Farm.

Ever wonder why koi-shaped flags fly above Japanese households in Hawaii on Boy’s Day? Japan-born Taro Kodama, whose family runs a koi farm in Mililani, says the answer lies in mythology.

“Koi are known to grow into dragons after they get old enough, so that really symbolizes the strength of life,” said Kodama, president of Kodama Koi Farm at Mililani Agriculture Park. “That’s why we have koi flags on Boy’s Day.”

The farm, together with Aloha Koi Appreciation Society, aims to educate and encourage locals to raise koi as a hobby and will host a club meeting and seminar at 9 a.m. Aug. 25. The free event will be at the farm at 94-728 Lanikuhana Ave. It includes a tour, brief history of Japanese koi and information on raising koi. (Reservations are requested by calling 623-2997.)

“Hawaii may not be the best place to breed koi, but it’s the best place to raise koi because of its environment - weather is good and water is good,” explained Kodama, whose 10-acre farm serves mostly Mainland customers.

“We have right now about 140,000 Japanese koi in stock,” he said.“Everything is from Japan. We never breed koi here.”

The farm’s koi, called “nishikigoi” meaning “colorful carp,” come from Niigata prefecture, the breed’s home. Kodama said koi bred in China or America may start off beautiful but lose their beauty as they grow because “they work on the genes so much.”

The family’s Mililani operation opened last year and is their largest. They also have a 1-and-a-half-acre distribution center in California and the original business in Nagoya, Japan, which Taro’s father, Mamoru, founded some four decades ago. The entire family has since transplanted here, where Taro’s brother, Hidenobu, oversees the farm, and their mother, Taeko, does errands.

Kodama Koi Farm and the Aloha Koi club, co-founded by former Gov. George Ariyoshi and Mamoru, recently donated 835 koi valued at $68,500 to the Hilton Hawaiian Village. The hotel will be the site of the second Japan Nishikigoi Expo in Hawaii Nov. 10 and 11, where koi lovers and dealers can view the Mililani koi firsthand.

In the marketplace, koi can sell anywhere between $30 and $30,000, Taro said. The most expensive koi his father ever sold went for $250,000.

“We have an old Japan koi show every year,” he added. “The grand champion can be worth as much as a small condo because it’s not something that you can manufacture in a factory. Everything has to happen by accident: the skin, pattern, colors.”

For more information, email .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) or visit the website at www.kodamakoifarm.com