At the third annual Hawaii Book and Music Festival earlier this month, there was a whole tent reserved for food and cookbooks — you should come next year! — and there was much to learn.

Chef Russell Siu of 3660 on the Rise showed how to make seared 'ahi crusted with odd little Japanese crackers and drizzled with butter sauce. Speakers discussed Hawai'i's food history, our unique foodways, how to eat more healthily and how to become a "locavore."

That last term was used by our former food editor, Joan Namkoong, who, after leaving The Advertiser, spearheaded the effort to create true Island farmers markets here — those that sell only local food, flowers and crafts.

A "locavore" is defined as someone who tries to eat only those foods grown within 100 miles of their home — not completely practical here in Hawai'i what with the ocean between islands and the fact that we grow so few staples. But you can, with some effort, eat mostly Hawai'i-grown produce.

Namkoong offered some interesting facts in her talk: