For 100 years, Cooperative Extension has been enriching program in Hawaii

Compared to the rest of the United States, Hawaii’s agricultural profile has an unusually high percentage of small farms.

Nearly two out of three farms are less than 50 acres, and 90 percent have annual sales under $50,000.

People who farm on this scale have limited resources for learning about, and applying, new methods and technologies.

That’s one reason why the U.S. Cooperative Extension Service remains as important and relevant today as when it was established 100 years ago this month.

Cooperative Extension is an essential partner in providing access to cost-saving, yield-increasing and environmentally sound crops and practices.

Extension agents and specialists from the University of Hawaii College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resources (CTAHR) are involved in nearly every aspect of island agriculture, from the bees that pollinate crops to pest-control practices that are key to economic viability and safe export of Hawaii produce.

Early in the last century, a Cooperative Extension survey pointed to the need for Hawaii to become more self-sufficient in the production of food — a goal that resonates with increased urgency today.

From the beginning, extension work had addressed the viability of agricultural diversification in Hawaii.

CTAHR has played a critical and multifaceted role in the development of signature Hawaii crops, such as macadamia, coffee, papaya, shrimp and tropical flowers — including testing the viability of varieties and markets, tackling pest and disease threats, and establishing industry cooperatives and associations.

Today our employees are involved in the preservation and propagation of native Hawaiian plants such as taro, sweet potato, and la’au lapa’au (healing herbs).

Our nutritional specialists and agriculturalists work together to promote locally grown food and raise awareness of food safety and good agricultural practices.

Our experimental research stations sustain a variety of projects from livestock to floriculture that benefit local growers and producers who use conventional or organic practices.

We can, as one agent is fond of saying, take the risk of trying new crops or methods that are too big of a gamble for a small farmer working on a limited profit margin.

But that’s just half of the story.

More than half of the people reached by CTAHR extension programs are served in nonagriculture activities — the "human resources" half of our college name.

We’re helping children get a strong start toward productive adulthood through programs like Nutrition Education for Wellness, which promotes healthy lifestyle choices; the Children’s Saving Project, which encourages financial understanding; and Gene-ius Day activities that generate appreciation of science.

At the other end of the spectrum, elder-related workshops and support groups assist baby boomers facing the monumental responsibility of caring for elderly parents.

We also are involved in environmental protection, from raising awareness about and helping communities fight wildfires in Hawaii and across the Pacific, to tailoring technologies in the fight against destructive invasive trees that threaten our fragile watersheds. Specialists are combating invasive species, conserving resources and beautifying our urban areas by turning roadside areas into native plant nurseries.

We don’t work alone. Volunteers provide more than 120,000 hours a year to Extension projects.

CTAHR Master Gardener training empowers participants to become garden specialists within their own communities.

Our researchers invite the public to participate in "citizen science" initiatives such as the Pulelehua Project, which tracks the Kamehameha butterfly, our state insect, via smartphone photos and Facebook.

The Plant Doctor smartphone app developed by a faculty member provides a diagnosis to growers and plant enthusiasts who send pictures and basic information about their plant problems.

Activities such as these bring CTAHR into contact with nearly 102,000 people a year outside of the academic classroom. We share science-based knowledge through 27 offices and stations in communities statewide. Cooperative Extension remains one of the most effective means for turning new knowledge generated by universities into useful practices for farms and families.

Here’s to another 100 years of service enriching Hawaii nei.