AgFood System Study: Ag Value Chain Team meeting

Hawai’i Island Agriculture and Food System Study

Understanding Agricultural Value Chains - Sub-team Meeting #1

July 13th, 2020

Held via Zoom

1.   Participants

2.   Meeting Objectives

Objectives for the meeting were to:

A.    Agree upon purpose of sub- team;

B.    Determine criteria for prioritizing which agricultural value chains to focus on

C.    Identify the basis for comparing opportunities to enhance value chain growth; and

D.    Identify the factors inhibiting or enabling a collective effort to pursue those opportunities.

3.   Strategic Framework for Sub-team

The following strategic framework for the sub-team was presented at the meeting and agreed to by the participants:

4.   Identifying Criteria

Participants in the meeting discussed how to prioritize which agricultural sectors to focus more data collection and analytical efforts towards, identifying criteria for selecting crops or sectors with the most market relevance for Hawai’i Island, the highest opportunities for growth and the most feasibility for realistic market system change. The following criteria summarizes the feedback discussed during the meeting:

Market Relevance

Potential for Increasing Farm Income/Employment:

·       Number of Farms

·       Value of Annual Sales

·       Quantity of Annual Production

·       Number of people employed in value chain

·       Number of districts producing on island

Potential for Improving Food Resiliency:

·       Storage facilities and capacity

·       Quantity distributed by food banks annually

·       Value of annual export sales

·       Quantity consumed on island annually

·       Quantity consumed in state annually

·       Quantity exported annually

·       Staple food for island residents

·       Nutritional value of crop

Growth Opportunities

Value Added Production:

·       Processing and storage needs

·       Processing and storage functions available on island and their locations

·       Processing and storage functions done off island

·       Waste and by-products

·       Percentage of farms involved in every aspect of the value chain

Access to Support Services/Infrastructure:

·       Skills and expertise needed

·       Average cost of labor

·       Farmworker housing needs

·       Average cost and duration of land preparation

·       Average length of time to complete clear and plant

·       Availability at local food hubs

Potential for scaling up production:

·       Average yields

·       Availability of new production technologies

·       Average period from planting to first production

·       Regenerative use of natural resources

Feasibility

Resources:

·       Availability of capital or grant funding

·       Availability and access to equipment

·       Associated Infrastructure required

·       Availability of labor

·       Availability and cost of land

Capacity

·       Existing cooperatives/associations within the sector

·       Alignment with State policies/priorities

·       Alignment with County policies/priorities

·       Public support/opposition

·       Availability of multiple dynamic revenue streams

·       Enabling policies for sustainable growth

5.   Next Steps and Conclusion

The meeting concluded with the Facilitators advising that the data collection team would be established in the following weeks and individual team members who have an interest in participating in the team were welcome to contact the facilitators if they are interested in participating.