Hawai'i Community-Based Food Security

Hawai'i Community-Based Food Security

Summary

This project is developing a manual and statewide workshop series focusing on sustainable perennial food-producing landscapes. Integrating perennial food plants in private and public landscapes has many advantages, including:

• Increasing food production in urban, periurban, and rural areas where the food is consumed, avoiding reliance on fossil-fuel dependent distribution systems.
• Reallocating some of the fertilizer, pest management, fuel, and labor resources that are currently consumed in ornamental landscapes to growing food.
• Providing opportunities to supply small, local farmers markets with produce.
• Expanding opportunities for value-added cottage industries such as preserves, baked goods, fermented products, and other specialty items.

Objectives/Performance Targets

There are four outputs from this project:

1. Sustainable, perennial food-producing landscapes manual for Hawai‘i
2. Five workshops in the Hawaiian islands
3. A marketing/information kit for commercial and government landscape professionals
4. A policy brief for elected officials, civil servants, and NGOs

Accomplishments/Milestones

a. The project manual draft currently includes over 180 pages with 150 photos and other illustrations assembled. The contents that have been completed in draft form are as follows. Publication is expected by August 31, 2014.

• “Sustainable Traditional Agricultural Systems of the Pacific Islands.” 60 pages, 50 graphics
• “Connecting Pacific Island agroforestry species.” Covers the important traditional species and their functional roles in agroforestry systems. 25 pages, 25 graphics
• “Enhancing soil function and plant health with locally available resources.” 30 pages, 30 graphics
•  “Integrating small-scale livestock production in agroforestry landscapes.” 24 pages, 15 graphics
• “Alternative Pest Control Strategies for Agroecosystems in the Pacific Region.” 35 pages, 30 graphics
• “Small-scale farm enterprises based on perennial food plants.” 10 pages, 10 graphics
• “Agroforestry Resources in the Pacific.” 3 pages

b. We are planning workshops for June 2014 on Hawai‘i Island and September 2014 on Maui. The O‘ahu, Kaua‘i, and Moloka‘i workshops are tentatively planned for September 2014, with logistics to be confirmed with speakers.

c. The marketing/information kit will be completed after the manual is published, likely by September 30, 2014.

d. The policy brief will be completed after the manual is published, likely by September 30, 2014.

Traditional Pacific agroforest with breadfruit (1) growing together with coconut (2), taro (3), giant taro (4), banana (5), and papaya (6) in Samoa. Such centuries-old systems can be used as models for future low-input food production systems.

Impacts and Contributions/Outcomes

To date, this project has not released any educational products to the public, so impacts are so far nominal.

Collaborators: