Agriculture Innovation Center

Overview and Background

For many years, stakeholders across Hawaiʻi Island have identified the lack of shared processing facilities as a critical bottleneck in moving local agriculture beyond fresh produce markets and into higher-value products. This realization originally emerged from feasibility studies and value chain analyses conducted under the Hawaiʻi Island Agriculture and Food System Study. That research confirmed that farmers, processors, and community organizations saw great potential for a multi-purpose Agriculture Innovation Center (AIC) in Hilo. The concept was further refined during a 2022 collaboration charrette and stakeholder engagements. At present, The Food Basket has embraced the AIC vision, integrating it into their Ho‘olako Food Campus plan. The overall goal remains the same: to establish a shared facility with the right equipment, technical support, and business services to help local producers create value-added products competitively – thereby reducing dependence on imported processed foods and strengthening Hawaiʻi Island’s economic resilience.

Why a Shared Processing Facility?

1. Value-Added Growth: Converting fresh crops into juices, flours, powders, frozen packs, jams, sauces, and shelf-stable items captures higher margins and mitigates food waste.

2. Increased Food Security: Processing extends product shelf life and expands both local and off-island market opportunities, keeping more production, labor, and profits on-island.

3. Innovation & Collaboration: A common processing facility fosters cooperative approaches to equipment sharing and cost reduction, encourages product experimentation, and spurs the development of new revenue streams.

4. Public-Private Partnership: The AIC model invites nonprofits, farmers, private businesses, and government agencies to jointly invest and operate facilities, balancing commercial viability with community benefits like training and educational services.

   
   

Producer Demand for Shared Processing

A collaboration session in August 2022 convened 48 participants—producers, distributors, extension agents, nonprofit leaders, and local government officials. They identified the following equipment and service priorities:

1. Co-Packing and Bottling

   • Strongest demand from fruit producers and small-scale food businesses needing an affordable way to package and label product consistently.

   • Producers specifically asked for filling lines, pouch-sealing machines, and other form-fill-seal equipment.

   • End products: fruit juices, purees, sauces (like lilikoi or other tropical flavors), salsas, condiments, and healthy snack packs.

2. High-Pressure Pasteurization (HPP)

   • Highly cited for extending the shelf life of fresh juices, purees, and sauces without sacrificing flavor or nutrition.

   • Draws strong interest from tropical fruit and dairy/alternative beverage producers (e.g., coconut or macadamia milk).

   • Opens up new export possibilities by maintaining quality and freshness over longer transit times.

3. Dehydration and Milling

   • Seen as vital for root crops and specialty ingredients, including ʻulu, kalo, sweet potato, cassava, ginger, and turmeric.

   • Producers want to convert “B-grade” or surplus harvests into flours, powders (e.g., taro or moringa powder), and dried snack products (like fruit leathers, dried fruit, or chips).

   • Encourages robust new product lines appealing to health/wellness markets and extends the shelf life of abundant local crops.

4. Commercial Kitchens (Certified)

   • Farmers and food entrepreneurs increasingly need access to licensed kitchens for trial runs of recipes, small-batch production, and compliance with food safety rules.

   • Demand is especially high for facility hours that accommodate seasonal peaks, weekend usage, or evening processing schedules, with on-site storage (dry, chilled, and frozen) also considered essential.

5. Livestock and Poultry Processing

   • Many producers raised the need for shared infrastructure for processed meats, deli items (e.g. smoked meats, sausage, bacon), and advanced egg-handling (cleaning, sorting, packaging).

   • Though more specialized, possibilities include smoked meat lines, commercial slicing and packaging, and advanced egg-washing/candling units.

6. Cold Storage & Flash Freezing

   • Persistent demand for frozen fruit, purees, and farm-fresh meal components, especially for institutions or for exporting.

   • Producers see it as vital for storing “peak-season” produce to be processed later, smoothing supply and maximizing farm profits.

     
     

Priority Crops & Industries

Through multiple feasibility analyses and stakeholder feedback, recurring high-potential categories emerged:

• Tropical Fruits & Citrus: Mango, papaya, guava, lilikoi, and oranges are in steady supply and well-suited for juices, jellies, purees, dehydrated snacks, and syrups.

• Root Crops & Starches: Taro, ʻulu (breadfruit), sweet potato, cassava, and ube lend themselves to flours, puree blocks, chips, and frozen doughs or ready-packs for immediate use.

• Ginger & Turmeric: Producers frequently express interest in shared equipment to wash, slice, puree, and dehydrate. These are often sold at premium in wellness/nutrition markets.

• Livestock & Poultry: Specialized requests surfaced for advanced egg-handling, small-batch smoked meats (pork, turkey), jerky production, and bone broth or stock lines.

• Value-Added Dairy: Renewed local dairy interest sees potential in shared pasteurization and packaging lines for fluid milk, cheese, yogurt, butter, or ice cream.

Looking Forward

As The Food Basket’s Ho‘olako project takes shape, the Agriculture Innovation Center concept remains anchored in its original promise: collaborative, multi-crop processing lines that diversify local farming incomes and reduce reliance on expensive imports. The two guiding principles— shared infrastructure and coordinated services—are widely recognized for delivering clear benefits, including improved profitability for small farms, reduced food waste, and resilience-building through local value-added capacity. By integrating proven demand from farmers, focusing on priority crops, and assembling multi-stakeholder investments, the Agriculture Innovation Center positions Hawaiʻi Island on a transformative path toward a robust, innovative, and self-sustaining agricultural economy.

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