Small-scale agriculture in Hawaii just got more support as the state Department of Agriculture has awarded almost $2.7 million to nearly 600 applicants across the islands.

The DOA last week announced distribution of grants under the Micro-Grants for Food Security Program. A total of 579 awards — including 347 on Oahu — were awarded in 2022. More than 7,400 applications were submitted, the Agriculture Department reported.

The awards are meant to support people engaged in small-scale gardening, herding and livestock operations in Hawaii. That includes backyard gardens and those at Oahu’s community gardens, including the island’s largest one in Wahiawa, tucked between Kamehameha Highway and the H-2 freeway.

Wahiawa resident TJ Cuaresma plans on using the grant she received to rent a tiller and clear an overgrown plot she recently received at the garden.

“The back portion — about a quarter of the plot that I was given — is overrun with huge weeds that are now little trees,” she said. “I’ve been using my chain saw to cut down what I can, but I would like to be able to use that money to rent a tiller and till up that area completely.”

The City and County of Honolulu has 10 community garden sites. Wahiawa’s Sgt. E. Smith Community Garden includes 460 plots, each 20 by 40 feet.

Cuaresma, a full-time employee for a wholly owned subsidiary of Hawaiian Electric called Pacific Current, also grows and harvests vegetables in her backyard, some of which are delivered to others in the community, especially to those with less access to fresh food.

“I do a lot of work in our community,” such as distributing produce, “especially produce that may come to me from one of my friends that are farmers, or from my neighbors,” she said. “We’ve got a couple of kupuna groups … and we either harvest or pick up, and we distribute to the kupuna out here, because fresh produce is very costly to them. Although it is a priority, it’s not always attainable.”

According to the micro-grant program’s application, canning setups, hydroponics, agricultural education costs and some infrastructure expenses can also be covered by the funding.

In 2021, the first year of the agricultural grant program, the DOA distributed 177 awards — fewer than one-third of the grants distributed this time around.

“There was unprecedented interest in the micro- grants program this year,” Phyllis Shimabukuro- Geiser, chair of the state Board of Agriculture, said in a statement. “Those who were awarded the grants submitted proposals that were well thought out and most likely to achieve the grant purpose of increasing the quality and quantity of locally grown foods in areas where access to food is limited.”

The grants range from $750 to $5,000, and funding was provided by the U.S. Department of Agriculture under the 2018 Farm Bill. In 2022 only people were allowed to apply for the grants; organizations were allowed to apply in 2021.

The increased interest and support for small-scale agriculture is important for food security and resilience in Hawaii, said state Rep. Amy Perruso (D, Wahiawa- Whitmore-Poamoho). “It’s basically a historical local practice; that is how our communities are organized,” she said. “We need to figure out more institutionalized ways to support that.”

Support can be provided, for example, at Oahu residences that have fruit trees ready to be harvested but residents unable to do that work themselves. Perruso also said smaller-scale local food aggregators and distributors such as food hubs, which grew in popularity during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, need support as well.

Between 85% and 90% of Hawaii’s food is imported. The state’s reliance of the shipment of food is increasing the size of its carbon footprint while leaving the islands vulnerable to food shortages if there’s a disruption in the supply chain — which became a matter of concern amid pandemic restrictions.

“We’re all pretty aware that we don’t have structures in places to provide security in case of disaster, but also in general. That resilience around our food system is really weak,” Perruso said.

Noting that she wants more to be done to support the micro-grant level of agriculture, she said, “I think it’s often neglected by policymakers because it’s not institutional and it’s hard to provide oversight … but I saw (the grants) used in my community” that aim establish better infrastructure and planning tied to locally produced food, and getting that food to residents.