The Hawaii Foodbank has a direct link to residents throughout the state who are experiencing food insecurity — defined as lack of access to enough food for an active, healthy life. Nearly 160,000 people turn to the Foodbank each month, but the need, sadly, is even greater than that.

On Wednesday, the Foodbank released The State of Food Insecurity in Hawai‘i, a comprehensive first report of its kind in Hawaii using the U. S. Household Food Security Survey Module, a measurement tool used for population studies. It’s an alarming read: Overall, the report indicates about 30% of Hawaii’s people and 29% of households with children have experienced food insecurity.

More help is required. In addition to expanded federal, state and public school-based food aid programs, this must include more robust and dependable food distribution programs targeted in areas of greatest need, paired with vigorous outreach. Report results show that a striking proportion of food-insecure households don’t know how or where to seek assistance, or face hurdles to access.

Children experiencing food insecurity are more likely to develop physical health problems such as heart disease and diabetes, as well as cognitive and/or developmental impairment. This is a result every family and community in the state must strive to avoid. Yet alarmingly, more than 47% of Filipinos and 43% of Native Hawaiians, Pacific Islanders and Native American residents live in food-insecure households.

Some welcome news did come this week: Hawaii’s Department of Human Services announced that it’s working with the Department of Education to provide “SUN Bucks” aid for families with school-aged children enrolled in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) or temporary assistance programs, as well as families with kids who received National School Lunch Program (NSLP) benefits. These NSLP families can receive $177 for each qualifying child, automatically — a big help as families face higher food costs when school’s out.

More kids can be eligible for SUN Bucks, but families need to apply. Food assistance is available for youths living without a permanent home, for migrant kids and for keiki who received free or reduced-price school meals but did not use an NSLP application. (Starting in June, those interested can visit humanservices.hawaii.gov.) It’s kids in the non-automatic categories of eligibility that are particularly concerning, because they likely overlap with the at-risk groups the Hawaii Foodbank’s study identified.

Another statewide initiative, a partnership between the Food Basket and Hawai‘i Good Food Alliance, reimburses grocery stores and food hubs to offer 50% discounts on locally grown fruits and vegetables for those using SNAP. Increased state funding can help even more, and must be implemented — but here again, must be paired with outreach in high-need areas. Farmers markets can be an ideal venue. The state and program operators should also use data to determine whether certain non-English language users are not accessing programs, and reach out in culturally appropriate ways.

Foodbank CEO Amy Miller says the problem isn’t inadequate food supplies — it’s food waste, in that food is reaching Hawaii’s shores but going uneaten, rather than being distributed to those in need. That’s where programs such as Aloha Harvest come in, maximizing food distribution using strategic and data-driven techniques. This organization and similar ones should be included in any coordinated effort to get food where it’s needed.

It’s encouraging that Mayor Rick Blangiardi says he wants to investigate how Honolulu can help more — acknowledging the city “hasn’t contributed much” to this issue. Just this month, the city held its first food drive since the pandemic, collecting thousands of pounds of food for the Foodbank. Miller has called for monetary and operational support as the best way to build foodbank capabilities — so there’s much upside for coordination here.

It’s not impossible to eliminate food insecurity in Hawaii. But it will take plenty of effort, and the most efficient strategy is teamwork.