Surrounded by the Pacific Ocean, with mountain landscapes and ocean views, the state of Hawaii is beautiful. Over a millennium of Native Hawaiian history tells us that the islands were once capable of producing enough food to feed their people. However, the current state of food production in Hawaii reveals a contrasting reality. Between 85% and 90% of Hawaii’s food is imported from the mainland and elsewhere. If Hawaii’s ports were to close, the state would have only enough food for five to seven days.
Hawaii’s reliance on food imports isn’t just scary and dangerous to its residents — it is also inevitable.
The state of Hawaii and various community organizations have been working for decades to double local food production by 2030. Despite the efforts, the current structure of Hawaii’s economy and growing population make it nearly impossible to reverse the reliance on food importation. The Aloha+ Challenge also indicates that we are not on track to meet food production goals, despite the directives set by the state Department of Agriculture.
Investing in Hawaii’s local food production is a noble and worthy goal. However, even if this goal were met — which appears unlikely — doubling our food production would optimistically provide only 30% of the food needed to feed Hawaii’s residents.
To understand the impossibility of reversing Hawaii’s food importation, food insecurity must be understood as well.
Food security, as defined by the 1996 World Food Summit, is when “all people, at all times, have physical and economic access to sufficient, safe, and nutritious food that meets their dietary needs and food preferences for an active and healthy life.” Achieving food security in Hawaii, or anywhere else, is optimistic but unrealistic. By the World Food Summit’s definition, nowhere in the world is entirely food secure.
Hawaii has the highest cost of living and food in the nation. As costs rise, the link between Hawaii’s import dependence and food insecurity will continue to deepen.
While the reality of food importation may be inevitable, the extent and severity of its impact on residents’ lives can and should be reduced. The Merchant Marine Act of 1920, commonly known as the Jones Act, limits the transportation of goods between U.S. ports to vessels built and flagged in the U.S. and crewed mostly by Americans. According to the Grassroot Institute of Hawaii, this law adds about $0.40 per day to the cost of food for Hawaii families. At a time when the people of Hawaii are being “priced out of paradise,” and reliant on imports for basic necessities such as food, revising the Jones Act could help mitigate the high costs of living exacerbated by uncompetitive shipping costs.
Reliance on expensive imported goods will continue to make the economic realities of living in Hawaii more difficult, especially for younger generations like mine. As little progress has been made to increase agricultural production and reduce imports, it is the responsibility of the next generation to advocate for change. We must “export” outdated policies like the Jones Act and other factors that exacerbate shipping costs, and “import” an era of practical reforms that will create a prosperous and livable Hawaii for generations to come.
Nicholas Nishimura is a sophomore at Waipahu High School.
