Lt. Gov. Luke discusses local food production, biosecurity measures at National Lieutenant Governors Forum

Lt. Gov. Sylvia Luke recently returned from the 2025 Annual Meeting of the National Lieutenant Governors Association (NLGA), held in Lake Tahoe, where she presented on Hawaiʻi’s agricultural innovation and biosecurity efforts. 

Luke joined Idaho Lt. Gov. Scott Bedke in a peer panel discussion titled “Protecting and Promoting Your State’s Natural Assets.” She spoke about Hawaiʻi’s unique agricultural landscape as the most isolated population center in the world and the importance of investing in local food production, specialty crops, and robust biosecurity measures to reduce reliance on imported food. 

“Hawaiʻi is the only state in the nation that grows coffee commercially, and we have a unique opportunity to share our world-class products from coffee and cacao to tropical fruits and flowers with the rest of the country,” said Luke. “While we currently import nearly 90% of our food, strong partnerships with local farmers, collaboration across states, and support from the US Department of Agriculture are helping us move toward greater food security and resilience.” 

She also emphasized the need for continued collaboration with the USDA to ease regulatory barriers around the import and export of Hawaiʻi-grown products. During the session, she fielded questions from fellow lieutenant governors on opportunities for interstate collaboration, federal partnerships, and strategies for scaling agricultural innovation in isolated and rural communities.

The NLGA annual meeting brings together lieutenant governors and seconds-in-command from across the United States and its territories to exchange best practices and collaborate on shared policy priorities, including economic development, infrastructure and natural resource management.