Aloha, friends!
I hope you’re enjoying a little sunshine, a good cup of coffee, and maybe something delicious grown right here in Hawaiʻi.
I’ve got something on my mind today, and you know me. When it comes to our farmers, I have a hard time keeping my opinions to myself.
The state just announced emergency relief grants for farmers and ranchers recovering from this year’s storms. That’s good news, right?
Well, yes. Sort of.
Because the amount is $1,500.
And I have thoughts.
Hawaiʻi has announced a new emergency relief program for farmers and ranchers who suffered damage during storms Lala, Lowell and Moke.
The good news? Help is coming.
The bad news? It’s $1,500.
Yes, you read that correctly. Fifteen hundred dollars.
Now, I’m not one to turn down money for farmers. Lord knows they need every dollar they can get. But can we talk for a minute about what $1,500 actually buys when you’re trying to recover from a natural disaster?
A new computer, maybe. A replacement pump, if you’re lucky. A few loads of gravel. Fuel for the trucks and equipment. Maybe a portion of the bill for repairing a fence that decided to relocate itself during the storm.
What it probably won’t buy is a new greenhouse, a replacement irrigation system, a repaired farm road, or the crops and income lost while everything was underwater.
And that’s before we talk about labor.
The state’s new Emergency Farmer Relief Program will offer eligible agricultural producers up to $1,500 each, with applications opening November 2 and closing January 29, 2027. Funding is limited, and applications will be handled on a first-come, first-served basis if demand exceeds available funds.
Governor Josh Green described the program as helping farmers repair infrastructure, replace equipment and get back to producing food.
I appreciate the sentiment. I really do.
But $1,500 isn’t a recovery plan. It’s a contribution toward the recovery bill.
And there’s a difference.
After a disaster, farmers don’t just clean up the mess and reopen for business. They may have to rebuild the very systems that allow them to grow anything at all. They lose crops already planted, income they were counting on, and sometimes entire growing seasons.
The bills, of course, don’t take a vacation while the farm recovers.
We’ve had plenty of conversations in Hawaiʻi about food security, agricultural resilience and reducing our dependence on imported food. They’re important conversations.
But if we genuinely want local food production to survive, disaster recovery needs to reflect what it actually costs to keep a farm operating.
To be fair, DAB helped approximately 1,300 members of the agricultural community following the earlier Kona low storms. Getting assistance directly into farmers’ hands matters, and this program deserves credit for that.
Still, we need to stop confusing emergency assistance with meaningful recovery.
Give farmers the $1,500. Absolutely. But let’s not pretend we’ve rebuilt the farm.
And to our farmers and ranchers: apply. Take the money. You’ve earned every penny of assistance available.
Just don’t expect it to put your fence back where it belongs.
Until next time, eat local, support our farmers, and don’t be afraid to ask the uncomfortable questions.
With aloha and a little attitude,
Lorie
She Writes for Food
Because food matters. And so do the people who grow it.
For farmers and ranchers: Applications open November 2, 2026, through the Hawaiʻi Department of Agriculture and Biosecurity at dab.hawaii.gov. The deadline is January 29, 2027, and funding is limited.
She Writes for Food | Hawaiʻi agriculture, food, politics and the occasional inconvenient truth.