The military purchased $122 million in goods from Hawai'i businesses for sale at its commissaries last year, and yesterday about 70 companies put their products on display with the hopes of sharing a piece of that pie.

The 10th American Logistics Association Hawai'i Food Show was held yesterday at the Hilton Hawaiian Village and featured businesses of all sizes with a wide range of products. Also on hand were buyers and representatives from the Defense Commissary Agency, which is responsible for stocking the shelves at the 262 commissaries worldwide.

Some companies have participated in the show since its inception and have benefited greatly after having their products selected. Others were taking part in their first show with dreams of seeing their businesses grow through commissary sales and exposure.

The first show 10 years ago had 12 vendors, but its popularity has grown so much that it was moved from the Ihilani Resort to the Hilton so more vendors could be accommodated. Each company paid $600 for a booth.

Sharon Kobayashi, owner of Akamai Foods, has been in business for four years and specializes in oatcakes and other healthy baked products. She sells her items in several local stores and takes part in the Saturday market at Kapi'olani Community College, but Kobayashi said she's ready to expand her business and felt the ALA show would be the perfect venue.

"We do the farmers market and a lot of people come by, including military people, and ask us, 'Are you in the commissary, are you in the exchanges? This would do really well,' " Kobayashi said.

Yesterday was Kobayashi's first ALA show, and her expectations were high that someone with the Defense Commissary Agency would notice her product.

"They seem to be really interested, especially the exchange (representatives), who were interested in the fruitcake," she said.

The buyers will meet this weekend and select the products they want to make available to the members of the armed forces. That decision should come on Monday.

Last year, 800 products were presented at the show and 140 were chosen. Patrick Nixon, Defense Commissary Agency director and executive officer, said of the $122 million, $13.5 million of the products sold in commissaries were "unique Hawaiian products," such as coffee, chocolates, candies, sauces and spices.

Nixon said there is no other show like the ALA that gives businesses and the military a chance to meet and sample products.

"A lot of the small businesses, they have great products and they want to introduce them into the marketplace, but dealing with the Defense Department could be a daunting task at best," Nixon said. "We bring our buyers and contracting folks here and we work with them. We help them fill out the forms, understand how you do business, what the contracts mean, what the terms are."

He said the military also helps companies that aren't selected by offering advice on how to improve the packaging of a product or linking them with a distributor.

Nixon said mom-and-pop operations may have a more difficult time because they can't produce the volume needed to supply the commissaries, but if the product is good, the Defense Commissary Agency will work with the company.

"There are a lot of different ways that this venue can be used to promote business opportunities, and so far it's been incredibly successful," Nixon said.

Hawai'i Coffee Co. is one firm that has seen sales balloon since taking part in the first ALA show. The company manufactures Lion Coffee and Royal Kona Coffee, but the coffees had been sold primarily in Hawai'i until they were selected to be in military commissaries.

"It's worked for us," said Jim Wayman, Hawai'i Coffee Co. president. "We started out as a small vendor trying to squeeze local products into the commissary and we're to the point now that we're in Asia and on the Mainland. So it's turned out to be a really great opportunity."

Three years ago, Hawai'i Coffee added a line of teas and also creates new coffee blends for each ALA show. Wayman did not want to discuss specific numbers, but said sales have increased "a couple hundred percent" over the past 10 years.

That's exactly what Vivien Salvador is hoping to accomplish by taking part in her first food show. Salvador is owner of Manila Association, which distributes Filipino food products from her Kalihi warehouse.

Salvador said the buyers yesterday showed interest in the fish sauce and ice cream that she carries.

"It's a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity," she said. "I hope most of my products, if not all, will be picked up by the commissary. I'm a small business, I'm local, and I live in Hawai'i."

Reach Curtis Lum at culum@honoluluadvertiser.com.