The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Agricultural Marketing Service has awarded a total of nearly $1.3 million to four projects in Hawaii to strengthen local food systems, the office of U.S. Sen. Mazie K. Hirono announced Tuesday.
“Promoting sustainability in our food and agricultural systems is important for our communities, our environment, and our economy,” stated Hirono. “This funding and these projects are crucial as Hawaii works to reduce our reliance on imported goods."
The organizations behind the four Hawaii projects are Common Ground Collective, Hawaii Good Food Alliance, Kokua Kalihi Valley Comprehensive Family Services and the Olohana Foundation.
The funding will be distributed through grants from the Local Food Promotion Program, which supports food business enterprises that act as intermediaries in indirect producer-to-consumer marketing, and is awarding $31.8 million to 94 projects.
Here's a closer look at the recipients:
- Common Ground Collective works to increase food security for Maui communities, and will use this award to decrease the island's reliance on imported goods by enhancing the local food system, supporting local agriculture producers, and expanding the ability of local businesses to contribute to Maui's regional food system.
- Hawaii Good Food Alliance, based on Oahu, consists of community leaders who share in the production and distribution of food to rebuild community food systems. In partnership with the Hawaii Food Hub Hui, it aims to ensure maximum sales for local farmers and producers, while enabling access to food for communities.
- The Kokua Kalihi Valley Comprehensive Family Services' initiative, the Roots Food Hub Online project, is based on Oahu and will create an online sales and marketing application to expand the hub’s customer base and create new sales opportunities to support local farmers.
- The Olohana Foundation is based on Hawaii Island and will collaborate with local fruit producers to create new products, which will then be dispersed into the local food system. The project aims to increase profits for small farmers and enhance local capacity for aggregation, processing, and distribution of goods.
