Coffee is one of Hawaii’s signature products. The legendary Kona origin has been part of the mystique of Hawaii for nearly 200 years. High-quality Hawaiian coffee is a unique export crop. It is grown almost exclusively on small family farms, helping to support resilient rural communities.

However, the very success of Hawaii’s coffee has led to problems of counterfeiting that the coffee industry must address in order to protect the integrity of Hawaiian coffee in a global marketplace.

House Bill 280 seeks to repeal mandatory coffee certification for quality standards while giving Hawaii’s valuable coffee origins more protection.

Deep budget cuts in 2009 shrunk Hawaii’s Department of Agriculture (HDOA) budget by 19 percent. Positions were eliminated, including coffee inspectors. The loss of all but one inspector position in Kona crippled the viability of inspection service. This year’s growing season has been marked by increasing delays for inspection and certification. Coupled with impacts from the Coffee Berry Borer beetle, severe drought and increased shipping costs, the coffee industry has reached a tipping point. Delays of up to four weeks hurt the industry, crimping cash flows to farmers and producers alike.

The certification process has become a restrictive bottleneck, damaging the industry it was intended to protect. Inspector positions have not been restored. The pain will continue unless a remedy is found. Our primary competition is overseas, where our wage and benefit burdens don’t exist. Long delays combined with relatively high production and shipping costs combine to make one of Hawaii’s signature crops less competitive in the global marketplace.

Clearly a change is needed.

There are two aspects of coffee certification that inspections address: minimum quality standards and origin. Currently, in order to sell coffee as of Hawaiian origin, minimum quality standards must be met. Sophisticated buyers who pay the prices that Hawaiian coffees command typically request samples in advance. These samples are evaluated to a much higher standard than HDOA’s standards by panels of accredited cuppers with discerning palates. The ultimate arbiter of quality is the buyer. If coffee buyers are not demanding minimum quality certification by HDOA, HB 280 will make quality certification voluntary. If they are, it would continue to be available on a fee-for-service basis.

Second is certification for origin. This inspection helps ensure that the coffee is accurately represented by the seller with respect to where it is grown. Maximum penalties are currently a $1,000 maximum fine and up to one year in prison, or both. These penalties are not having the necessary deterrent effect. A $1,000 fine is less than the value of a single bag of quality Hawaiian green coffee and HDOA has never put anyone in jail.

Passage of HB 280 would make false labeling (counterfeiting) of Hawaii-grown coffee a felony punishable by a $10,000 fine and up to five years in prison. The bill provides for enhanced record-keeping and reporting and gives law enforcement statutory authority to enforce the laws. HB 280 gives Hawaii’s valuable coffee origins more protection than they have ever had before. The ability for producers to opt out of minimum quality certification will reduce HDOA’s workload, eliminate delays and help rural locations that have been historically underserved by inspectors.

It’s important to note that Hawaii’s current certification rules do not regulate roasted coffee or any coffee not moved out of the growing region. If the market can voluntarily regulate quality in these trading environments, the same is true at other levels.

While much of Hawaii’s coffee is produced on small family farms, large-scale production is also found on Maui, Kauai, Molokai and Oahu. Given this diverse spectrum of producers, it’s uncommon when such a broad array of stakeholders agrees on any issue. This is one of those landmark occasions when growers and producers, large and small, and government and law enforcement agree on a solution.

HB 280 would be less costly, improve Hawaii’s competitiveness, help rural underserved locations and protect Hawaii’s valuable origins better than ever before.

That sounds like a change for the better.