The Hawaiian Islands are highly reliant on imported foods for feeding residents and visitors alike. This is in part due to a shortage in food processing infrastructure locally that contributes to Hawaiʻi’s inability to process much of its own food products. This study examines the feasibility of increasing food self-sufficiency in the islands through utilizing legacy industrial fruit processing equipment recently acquired by Olohana Foundation, a small 501(c)3 non-profit in Hawaiʻi. This study asks: How can the Olohana Foundation develop their aseptic juicing line to best support increased food self-sufficiency in the islands? Additionally, how can the juicing line be re-deployed in a manner to provide sustainable economic opportunity to producers and other community members? Through interviews with Hawaiʻi food system experts, fruit grower and fruit product buyer surveys, and a review of selected Unites States Department of Agriculture National Agricultural Statistics Survey (USDA NASS) crop data for Hawaiʻi, our team evaluated the feasibility for re-establishing the juicing line. Our results found that due to the lack of available locally-produced fruits and high start-up and operational costs, it is unlikely that the juicing line can be re-established as it was previously operating, producing papaya and guava juices and purees. However, there is no shortage in demand for locally grown fruit products in Hawaiʻi and there is high interest from producers in joining a grower-owned cooperative. We conclude with several recommendations for the near, medium and long-term. In the near to medium-term, we recommend that the Foundation pursue alternative configurations of the equipment to produce niche Hawaiʻi products for which there is adequate supply, including fermented fruit products. In the long-term, the Foundation should research the potential for sourcing produce from other Pacific-region islands, as well as work at the policy and community levels to increase production of fruits locally, lower costs of production, and lower barriers to organic certification.
Details
- Industrial Juicing to Advance Food Security: Pre-feasibility study for utilizing legacy industrial fruit processing equipment in the Hawaiian Islands
- Hemphill, Eric (Author)
- Lourey, Stu (Author)
- Martinez, Mackenize (Author)
- Robertson, Claire (Author)
- Swette, Luke (Author)
- Wyman, Carly (Author)
- Olohana Foundation (Client)
- Swette Center for Sustainable Food Systems (Contributor)
Executive summary -- Introduction -- Background -- Food sovereignty, security, self-sufficiency & community-based food systems -- Decreasing food security over time -- Barriers to increasing food self-sufficiency -- Fruit processing -- Methodology -- Equipment, start-up costs & considerations -- Equipment -- Start-up costs -- Operational costs in Hawai'i -- Key takeaways -- Supply -- Biodiversity -- Most ubiquitous fruit varieties -- Other opportunities -- Transportation, logistics & gleaning -- Key takeaways -- Demand -- Fruits and fruit products in highest demand -- Local sourcing matters -- Meeting institutional demand -- Retail juice market in a resurgence -- Market trends -- Packaging and placement -- Certifications -- Design -- Juice prices -- Issues and opportunities -- Korean Natural Farming (KNF) -- Key takeaways -- Business structure -- Comparative business structure overview -- Limited Liability Company (LLC) and sustainable business corporations -- Cooperative -- Conclusions and recommendations -- Summary of key findings -- Recommendations -- References -- Appendices -- Appendix A: Interview protocol -- Appendix B: Hawai'i fruit growers survey tool -- Appendix C: Hawai'i commercial fruit buyers survey tool -- Appendix D: Pictures of equipment -- Appendix E: Small Business Development Center (SBDC) -- Business model chart
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Swette Center for Sustainable Food Systems. Industrial Juicing to Advance Food Security: Pre-Feasibility study for utilizing legacy industrial fruit processing equipment in the Hawaiian Islands.
December, 2021.
Statement of Responsibility
December 2021
This publication is a Capstone Report produced by graduate students completing the MS in Sustainable Food Systems and in the Certificate in Food Policy and Sustainability Leadership.