Local Food

Photograph by Rae Huo, Courtesy of Hawai‘i Department of Agriculture
Hawai'i Green Growth set ambitious targets in the areas of clean energy, local food, natural resource management, waste reduction, smart sustainable communities and green workforce to build a more secure, sustainable and resilient economy for Hawai'i by 2030.
HGG 2030 Target: Local Food
At least double local food production - 20-30% of food consumed is grown locally
2030 Target Background
The target to double local food production for local consumption came from stakeholder input to the Hawai'i 2050 Sustainability Plan, and HGG members agreed on this recommended target.
Leadership in Local Food
The State of Hawai'i released the Increased Food Security and Self-Sufficiency Strategy in 2012, which sets objectives, policies, and actions to increase the amount of locally grown food consumed by Hawai'i's residents. This strategic plan was prepared by the Office of Planning (OP) in cooperation with the Department of Agriculture (HDOA).
Many private and non-profit groups are leading innovation and investment in increased food production. HGG's work in local food is guided by HDOA, Ulupono Initiative, Slow Food Hawai'i, Agriculture Leadership Foundation, Hawai'i Fish Trust, Sustain Hawai'i, and UH College of Tropical Agriculture & Human Resources (CTAHR).
Measuring Progress
In 2012, the County of Hawai'i released Hawai'i Island Food Self-Sufficiency Baseline 2012, which included the first examples of a "local food" scorecard.
The basic metrics needed to track statewide food self-sufficiency are currently under development by a partnership between the HDOA, Ulupono Initiative, and Sustain Hawai'i. Together, they will identify benchmark indicators, existing data and data gaps that need to be addressed in order to build out a robust food security metrics database.
HGG's Sustainability Measures Start-Up Project is working with these partners, the Counties and others statewide to agree on a credible set of practical, public statewide sustainability indicators to inform decision-makers and the public on progress on our six sustainability targets.