Testimony on behalf of "Promoting a Resilient Economy for Hawaii Businesses" — Sharon Hurd, Chairperson, Board of Agriculture

Summary

Written testimony by Sharon Hurd, Chairperson of the Board of Agriculture, Hawaii Department of Agriculture, on "Promoting a Resilient Economy for Hawaii Businesses", dated 2023-08-18. The testimony addresses ways to improve and expand federal programs that support Hawaii small businesses in the agricultural sector. It lists three challenges small farmers face with federal grants: applying and administering them, theoretical concepts such as climate resiliency, and loss of productivity while executing the grant. It cites the 2017 Census of Agriculture, in which 78% of Hawaii farmers reported farm value of sales less than $25,000, and states that small family farms make up 91% of all Hawaii farms. It proposes solutions and names programs including the Regional Food Business Centers Program ($30 M award) and the Specialty Crop Block Grant Program.

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JOSH GREEN, M.D.                                                                         SHARON HURD
    Governor                                                                     Chairperson, Board of Agriculture

  SYLVIA LUKE                                                                         CAROL LEI OKADA
   Lt. Governor                                                                     Deputy to the Chairperson


                                              State of Hawaiʻi
                                     DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
                                           KA ʻOIHANA MAHIʻAI
                                          1428 South King Street
                                       Honolulu, Hawaiʻi 96814-2512
                                  Phone: (808) 973-9600 FAX: (808) 973-9613




   Sharon Hurd
   Chairperson, Board of Agriculture
   Hawaii Department of Agriculture

   RE Testimony on behalf of “Promoting a Resilient Economy for Hawaii Businesses”, ways to
   improve and expand federal programs that support Hawaii small businesses in the
   agricultural sector.

   The main challenges Hawaii small farmers face in seeking federal grants are 1) applying
   and administering the grants – overcoming barriers of compliance, language, fiscal
   processes and reporting; 2) theoretical concepts – sustainability, climate change, climate
   resiliency, cooperative interactions; and 3) loss of productivity while executing the grant.
   In the 2017 Census of Agriculture, 78% of Hawaii farmers reported farm value of sales less
   than $25,000 with 62% reporting farm value of sales less than $10,000. Small family farms
   make up 91% of all Hawaii farms. Many of the new farmers are immigrants from Southeast
   Asia or new farmers from the local population.

   While there are various solutions to the three barriers noted, 1) include funding for a
   service provider to handle the accounting and reporting; 2) developing grant programs
   that focus on the farmer – how to support their operations, provide what they need and
   meet the conceptual goals; and 3) create outcomes and indicators that the small farmer
   finds value in continuing – the recent federal programs such as the “Regional Food
   Business Centers Program” ($30 M award), the “Resilient Food Systems Infrastructure
   Program” ($3.2 M award), the “Partnerships for Climate-Smart Commodities” ($40 M
   award) provide a top-down approach to supporting Hawaii small businesses in the
   agricultural sector. By awarding funds to a hui of committed partners with the institutional
   knowledge to create, manage and monitor programs that can be specific to providing the
   resources that a farmer, food hub or commodity group needs to expand and/or become
   commercially profitable, the projects have a high degree of success to benefit the small
   farmers.

   Programs such as the Specialty Crop Block Grant Program, and Microgrants for Food
   Security Program provide funding for specialty crops important to Hawaii – cacao, coffee,
   kalo, uala, ulu – and provide funding to individuals to increase the quantity and quality of
   locally produced food in food insecure communities – and are vital parts of the HDOA
   support for Hawaii farmers.


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