Before Western contact, the people of Hawai‘i were self-sufficient, producing all the resources they needed to thrive. The state’s history of cultural changes, economic shifts, environmental degradation, and population growth has forced Hawaii’s current population to rely heavily on externally sourced food supplies. However, Hawaii’s isolated island geography makes this procurement system precarious, leaving the state vulnerable to food shortages during unpredicted supply chain disruptions (Pollard et al., 2014). There have been efforts within the Hawai‘i State Legislature to promote local food production and mitigate the risk of shortages.

Senate Bill 376 (SB 376) establishes plans and allocates funds to support Hawaii’s ‘Aina Pono ‘Farm to School’ program and increase the amount of locally sourced food used in school food programs. While there have been several successful initiatives under SB 376 to get fresh produce in local Hawai‘i schools, there have currently been no attempts to adapt these programs to supply Hawai‘i schools with fresh, local seafood.

The goal of this project was to work with our partners at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and Conservation International Hawai‘i (CI Hawai‘i) to investigate the viability of integrating sustainable, locally caught seafood into Hawai‘i school lunches. This was done with the intention of contributing to the state’s self-sufficiency, promoting sustainable food production, and supporting the local fishing industry. In this investigation, we had two objectives.

Our first objective was to evaluate Hawaii’s fishery supply chain dynamics and existing distribution systems to identify potential options for supplying fresh fish to local school systems. To fulfill this objective, we conducted semi-structured interviews with distributors, management specialists, and other experts involved in Hawaii’s fishery supply chain.

The team visiting Fresh Island Fish

From these interviews, we gained a comprehensive understanding of Hawaii’s local fishery supply chain operations, including different local seafood procurement strategies, the processing and distribution infrastructure, and the local supply and demand dynamics. The consensus gathered was that a limiting factor for getting fresh locally sourced seafood into Hawai‘i schools is competition with tourists, who can afford high-quality products. Instead, our interviewees suggested that commercial bycatch or farm-raised seafood could be more financially viable for a school lunch program. Many experts suggested tilapia could be a good fit for a school lunch program due to its ability to be reliably and abundantly produced, at low costs. Another obstacle that emerged from many of our interviews is that Hawai‘i lacks the local processing and distribution infrastructure to accommodate the demand of the Hawai‘i school district to compete with the offshore suppliers. The most attractive distributors to the Hawai‘i Department of Education (HIDOE) are those that can reliably supply a product that is already processed and packaged. While some seafood distribution companies are conducting processing operations locally, the majority are either not doing so or are in the very early developmental stages and are not operating on a scale compatible with HIDOE contract conventions.

Our second objective was to assess existing sustainable school food programs to identify features of a successful program and strategies for implementation. To fulfill this objective, we conducted semi-structured interviews with sustainable food program initiative specialists and individuals from school communities with insight into the school food service operations and the logistics of how a ‘sea to school’ program could fit into these systems.

Photo of the Lettuce Planters at Kunia Country Farms

From the information gathered from our interviews for objective two, we identified four key features that characterize a successful ‘sea to school’ lunch program in Hawai‘i. These include compatibility with HIDOE regulations and food safety standards, a reliable supply of local seafood products, properly equipped kitchen facilities with suitably trained staff, and positive school community engagement. In this investigation, we also identified and spoke with representatives from various organizations that are either already working on ‘farm to school’ projects in Hawai‘i or have expressed interest in similar projects. One notable local organization that has already invested resources in working with the Hawai‘i School Food Services Branch is Kunia Country Farms, an aquaponics company on O‘ahu. In our interview, the co-founder, Jason Brand, described plans to expand the company and work on creating and expanding the production of a local seafood product compatible with HIDOE procurement policies.

The information that we compiled from the interviews informed the recommendations we provided for our project partners at NOAA and CI Hawai‘i to facilitate the implementation of a ‘sea to school’ program in Hawai‘i. For local food supplies, we recommend utilizing alternative seafood products from commercial bycatch or aquaculture and encourage further collaboration with Jason Brand at Kunia Country Farms, as he has expressed interest in a ‘sea to school’ project. Additionally, we recommend that efforts be made to invest in local production of ready- to-bake seafood products to accommodate school kitchen equipment limitations and staff skill levels. For program design strategies, we recommend developing complementary agricultural literacy curricula and educational materials that are accessible and easy for schools to incorporate. Additionally, we encourage investment in kitchen staff training. To facilitate the successful implementation of the program, we recommend getting various members of the school community involved in the program, as much as possible.

Since all of these program measures will need to be approved by HIDOE and the State Procurement and Contracts teams, we recommend creating a formal mechanism for regular collaboration between HIDOE and other organizations with a vested interest in increasing locally sourced fresh ingredients in Hawai‘i public schools. To do this, we propose establishing a dedicated ‘sea to school’ task force with representatives from both within and external to HIDOE who will work collaboratively towards this common goal. We recommend that this task force considers subdividing the Hawai‘i school district into smaller subdistricts and reevaluates the current HIDOE bidding procurement policies to prioritize smaller localized supplier contracts.

Our team identified potential barriers to implementing a successful ‘sea to school’ program in Hawai‘i and developed recommendations in putting this program into action. Although we have identified significant obstacles in implementing a ‘sea to school’ program in Hawai‘i, we found some surprising assets that could make such a program viable. We recognize there may be similar efforts or processes occurring on the neighboring islands that could support this initiative. We aspire that our project results and recommendations will direct a relevant audience to continue this work towards implementing a ‘sea to school’ program in Hawai‘i.