#Hawaii Department of Agriculture

Nearly a year after Gov. Josh Green signed into law a measure intended to help Hawaiʻi counties tame unruly flocks of feral chickens, the initiative remains unfunded and unimplemented, leaving counties without state assistance and the birds free to roam island streets and neighborhoods. Unfunded mandate Enacted on July 3, 2024, Act 185 (formerly Senate […]

Twenty-four Hawaiʻi businesses were given reimbursements from the ag department for collecting and transporting compost within the state this past fiscal year.

The price of local and mainland eggs in Honolulu rose significantly in the first quarter of this year. However, the price between local and mainland eggs was comparable, according to latest statistics from the Hawai‘i Department of Agriculture, Market Analysis and News Branch.

The initial 90-day pause was issued on Dec. 13, 2024 and expires on March 13, 2025. The extension will continue until June 13, 2025.

The data indicates that between 2021 and 2024, the price for a dozen locally produced eggs rose by 28.4% from $6.91 to $8.87 while the price of imported mainland eggs increased by 51.8% from $5.50 to $8.35. The increase in the price of mainland eggs can be mainly attributed to the highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) which has impacted egg production across the continental US. 

The Hawai‘i Department of Agriculture Animal Industry Division is again urging commercial poultry operations and backyard bird owners to increase biosecurity measures to protect their flocks from avian influenza.

An agriculture inspector from the Hawai‘i Department of Agriculture Plant Quarantine Branch in Kona retrieved the animal early Sunday morning and arranged for it to be transported to Honolulu. This was the second opossum in as many months to be captured in the islands.

Plant quarantine inspectors with the Hawai‘i Department of Agriculture trapped an opossum overnight at a big-box store in Iwilei. This marks the third opossum that has been captured on Oʻahu this year. The storage container where the opossum was trapped was not used for shipping.

The 2024 Hawaiʻi Food System Summit, organized by the Transforming Hawaiʻi’s Food System Together initiative, recently wrapped up their third annual event, which drew over 200 attendees.

In response to the detection of the avian flu virus in Hawai‘i’s wastewater and wild birds, state agencies are urging the public to voluntarily pause the interisland movement of poultry and other bird species for 90 days, effective immediately. This recommendation follows the suggestion of Moloka‘i State Senator and farmer Lynn DeCoite and is a proactive measure aimed at mitigating the spread of the virus.

The US Department of Agriculture has announced awards for 17 Hawai‘i projects totaling $2.6 million under the Resilient Food System Infrastructure program. The RFSI program is aimed at strengthening middle-of-the-supply chain operations and local food systems by supporting processing, manufacturing, storing, transportation, wholesaling and distribution of agricultural products. The grants include $77,896 to Maui Breadfruit Co. and $59,058 to NH Properties, LLC dba Haʻikū Organic Farm on Maui.

A live snake was found in a container of Christmas trees as it was being unloaded at a store in Hilo on Saturday morning, Nov. 16.

The state Department of Agriculture received confirmation that highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) was detected in a backyard flock of various birds in Central O‘ahu. The property involved is within the area served by the Wahiawā Wastewater Treatment Plant, where a recent detection was reported. This is the first confirmed detection of the virus in Hawai‘i.

The Hawai‘i Department of Agriculture has opened three requests for proposals to assist in the control and management of invasive pests, including the coconut rhinoceros beetle, little fire ants and two-lined spittle bug. Information on the requests is available on the State Procurement Office, Hawai‘i Awards and Notices Data System website, at hands.ehawaii.gov/hands/opportunities.

A live skunk was captured at Honolulu Harbor Monday night by agriculture inspectors from the Hawai‘i Department of Agriculture after several days of tracking the animal.

Hawai‘i has been awarded $524,773 by the US Department of Agriculture under its 2024 Specialty Crop Block Grant Program. Through this grant program, the Hawai‘i Department of Agriculture will fund nine projects that enhance the competitiveness of specialty crop products and create new market opportunities for the state’s specialty crop producers.

Another live opossum has been captured in Honolulu. Freight workers in Kalihi were unloading construction material from a 40-foot shipping container Monday afternoon and spotted an animal that looked like a very large rat run and hide inside the container.

Record funding for biosecurity measures approved by the state legislature this year will expand the state’s efforts to stop the spread of invasive species such as little fire ants, the coconut rhinoceros beetle and coqui frogs, the Hawaiʻi Department of Agriculture (HDOA) announced Monday.

The Hawai‘i Department of Agriculture (HDOA) has awarded grants for community-based management of coconut rhinoceros beetles (CRB) on O‘ahu, and to support green waste management on the islands of Kaua‘i, Maui, and O‘ahu. Awards for the two grant programs totaled about $293,000.

The Hawai‘i Department of Agriculture is now accepting applications for the popular Micro-Grant for Food Security Program. This is the fourth year of the grant program which provides support for small-scale gardening, herding and livestock operations to increase the quantity and quality of locally grown food in food-insecure communities. A total of $3,576,470 is available for this year’s program which was provided by the US Department of Agriculture under the 2018 Farm Bill.