Want more local food? Start by weeding out barriers
by Keli'i Akina, Ph.D., President / CEO, Grassroot Institute of Hawaii
Hawaii imports the vast majority of its food. These imports keep Hawaii fed, and I’m thankful we have access to food from across the world.
But for years, state and county lawmakers have made plans and goals to increase local food production. They say growing more food in the islands could provide fresher and higher-quality products and help ensure food security in the event of a disaster.
Those plans, however, tend to involve spending taxpayer funds and all too often wind up ineffective or abandoned.
A big reason is that many state and county regulations make farming, ranching and even backyard hobby agriculture difficult and expensive. Until lawmakers tackle these hurdles, their goals will remain out of reach.
In an upcoming report, my Grassroot Institute colleague Jonathan Helton explains 10 of these barriers to agricultural prosperity and makes the case that addressing them would not cost a dime of taxpayer money.
They include rigorous standards for exporting Hawaii-grown produce to the mainland, narrow allowances for selling homemade and farm-raised food, limited and unclear permitting exemptions for basic agricultural structures such as barns and greenhouses, restrictions on establishing other revenue streams and inflexible regulations for building employee housing.
At the Hawaii Agriculture Conference in Waikoloa this week, Helton sat on a panel that explained how easing one of them — strict rules on farmworker housing — could make a big difference for farmers and ranchers struggling to find and retain workers.
He said that Hawaii’s state and county officials can address the farm housing gap on two main fronts: streamlining the permitting process for new agricultural housing and legalizing unpermitted homes that already exist on farms and ranches.
To facilitate new housing, Helton explained, the state and counties could simplify zoning rules and reduce permitting timelines by allowing self-certification, preapproved plans and certain permit exemptions.
Also important, Helton said, is addressing the reality of existing structures. While official numbers are obviously not available, he explained that unpermitted homes on farms and ranches likely provide shelter for thousands of Hawaii residents. Many owners don’t even know they have unpermitted houses on their land, but they can get into legal trouble if county agencies find out about them.
Bringing that housing up to code can cost thousands of dollars in fees and tens of thousands in materials and labor. In some cases, a structure might be so old that it would be nearly impossible for it to meet current building codes.
Helton said the simplest way to deal with unpermitted structures is to allow landowners to claim them and exempt the county from any liability.
Of course, Helton outlines several other policy changes in his report that could give farmers and ranchers more freedom to thrive. It will be released soon, and I encourage you to watch out for it.
E hana kākou! (Let’s work together!)
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