Recent clashes relating to agriculture have grabbed the spotlight away from important progressive initiatives that are moving agriculture forward in Hawaii.
More than 90,000 acres of privately owned lands have been designated statewide as Important Agricultural Lands (IAL), which helps to ensure that these important natural resources will be retained for agricultural use.
The IAL designation effectively suppresses development pressure on these agricultural lands.
In the past, thousands of acres of agricultural lands were urbanized without any benefit to agriculture. While some people are still reluctant to visualize new models of a proven form of agriculture, this administration has supported urban agriculture practices as a purposefully planned, executed and maintained component of urban development.
An example is the 159 acres of agricultural lands to be set aside for commercial agricultural production within the Ho‘opili development in Ewa. Ho Farms, a successful farm in Kahuku, has signed a letter of intent to lease 18 acres in the Ho‘opili Urban Agriculture area.
In truth, the concept of urban agriculture is as old as agriculture itself, and can more commonly be recognized in the popular community gardens program established by the City and County of Honolulu back in 1975. The basic idea is to grow food nearest to where the demand is found.
In addition, urban agriculture is alive in Kaupuni, a 19-unit Department of Hawaiian Home Lands project in Waianae that has a planned integrated agricultural production area — greenhouses, aquaculture, and agricultural land — alongside a community center where residents can prepare their own foods.
Some of the homes have also installed aquaponics systems that are already in food production.
Support for urban agriculture can be found at the Urban Garden Center in Pearl City, an extension service provided by the University of Hawaii-Manoa’s College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resources. The master gardener program trains gardeners who then help others in the community with garden advice and education related to community and urban gardening.
In addition, Gov. Neil Abercrombie’s "New Day" plan has generated several initiatives to increasing our islands’ agricultural sustainability and food security. An unprecedented alliance is being formed between producers of protein — such as eggs, meat, dairy and seafood — to work on plans to grow our own animal feed in the islands.
With support from key members of the state Legislature, the Hawaii Department of Agriculture (HDOA) and the Oceanic Institute are spearheading this effort to attempt to significantly reduce the cost of feed for various types of livestock operations.
Industry leaders are offering their insights and experience to determine the best forms of feed, which may include the traditional grains and grasses to high-protein algae and other agricultural by-products.
Agricultural labor is one of the most difficult challenges for expanding the industry, so the state depart- ments of labor and agriculture have teamed up to hold meetings statewide on workforce development in agriculture.
A promising initiative is the development of a veterans-to-farmers program through the community colleges. In earning a certificate of education, this program will provide hands-on learning experiences for veterans interested not only in pursuing a career in agriculture but also in accessing higher education.
HDOA appreciates recent support to reinstate some positions that were lost three years ago. Critical support staff, inspectors and entomologist positions on Maui and in Kona are being filled and will strengthen the department’s activities across the state.
Rebuilding the detector dog program, stabilizing funding for agriculture inspectors, and moving plans forward for biosecurity inspection facilities at Hono-lulu International Airport and Honolulu Harbor are great strides in helping us protect Hawaii.
Agriculture has always been the backbone of our society — and these initiatives are examples of ongoing efforts to fortify the agricultural industry, and ultimately, our community.
