About Me

One of my first memories of love, caring, and comfort was through homemade food created with simple and fresh ingredients by my grandmothers. As a fifth generation Hawaiʻi-born local, it has always been important to me to support and feed local communities, providing environmental stewardship and conservation to Hawaii’s land. Through hand-picked and processed tea and farm-to-plate baked goods, I look to provide the same love, care, and comfort to you as my matriarchs did for me.

The Pastry Farmer, LLC was established in April 2021 as a result of a career change due to the COVID-19 Pandemic. Transitioning to an isolated, stressful work-from-home environment proved to be tough on my body and mental health and eventually led to taking a medical leave of absence. Already worried about my quality of life and longevity living with Crohn's Disease (I was diagnosed with this autoimmune disease in 2009), I had to reevaluate my priorities and start choosing a life that would foster happiness and health. One thought kept coming to mind: "Why am I waiting to retire to live out my life's passions?" 

I knew from my early twenties that I wanted to retire early and have a small-scale farm. But growing fresh food and being able to meld my culinary interests seemed like a distant dream, only reachable after "putting in my time" with life. However, the GoFarm Hawaii program popped up and seemed like the perfect opportunity to take a step forward in turning my dream into a concrete reality. I took a DEEP breath, left my job, applied to GoFarm, enrolled in culinary school and embarked on this wild and rewarding journey that started The Pastry Farmer, LLC. 

"The Pastry Farmer," became a name, a business, and a platform where I could share my love of ʻai (food) through baked goods, and ʻāina (land) through farming. It is the culmination of the hours spent in thought, sweat, tears, and joy that allows me to share my passion with you today. I look forward to working with you, eating with you, and sharing this journey with you all.

Thank you for your support,

Rachel Fukumoto, The Pastry Farmer