Agriculture

Hurricane Lala's impacts on macadamia nut farmers in Hawaiʻi come after years of compounding issues.

Some of the state’s most famous coffee-growing regions on Hawaiʻi Island were also among the hardest hit areas during Hurricane Lala.

In the middle of a busy urban center sits a fourth-generation, family-run farm tucked between the two phases of Pearlridge Mall in Central Oʻahu. Sumida Farm has been operating for nearly 100 years, cultivating and harvesting Hawaiʻi’s largest supply of watercress.

The state Board of Agriculture and Biosecurity rejected a proposal to relax import restrictions to Maui and Lānaʻi meant to keep out the invasive coconut rhinoceros beetle, but is open to making changes to those restrictions.

A seven-month-long Farm Apprentice Mentorship Program through the Hawaiʻi Farmers Union is open for applicants from across Maui County.

Dozens of local producers across the state have reported more than $3 million in losses from Hurricane Lala.

Access to land is one of the most significant barriers for farmers’ success on Oʻahu, according to an interim report from the Honolulu City Council’s Agricultural Development Task Force.

The state has approved an interim rule that restricts imports to Maui and Lānaʻi, as part of an effort to keep the invasive coconut rhinoceros beetle from establishing on those islands.

The state will consider a community petition asking for a restriction on imports to Maui or Lānaʻi, in an attempt to keep the islands from being overrun with coconut rhinoceros beetles.

No new coconut rhinoceros beetles have been detected in Hilo since one was found dead in a trap near the airport last week. The Big Island Invasive Species Committee has checked every trap in the surrounding area.