Since 2015, Ho‘ōla Veteran Services d.b.a. Ho‘ōla Farms has brought veterans, first-responders, caregivers, and the community together through agriculture and service-based learning projects with a shared goal: growing healthy food to support our community. In early 2020, to fill the needs of our community at the beginning of the pandemic, we created a pilot program called Operation Healthy Vets CSA with a goal to purchase a variety of locally sourced produce to be distributed to veterans in East Hawaiʻi. In July 2021 Hoʻōla Farms assumed management of East Hawaiʻi Farm-to-Car from Hilo County Farm Bureau. Re-branded as Hawaiʻi Farm to Car, we plan to increase distribution locations in East Hawai’i to support the growing needs in our area over the next two to five years.
Over the last year Hoʻōla Farms has expanded services to adopt a full agribusiness incubator model, which we hope can serve to connect and support Hawai'i Island farmers and the food system at large. This agribusiness development center is centrally located for aggregation and distribution of fresh and value-added agriculture products. Shared resources such as a shared-use commercial kitchen to create value-added products, and Hawaiʻi Farm-to-Car, an e-commerce website where over 85 island-wide farmers and producers sell weekly on the site, empower small-scale and new farmers to grow their businesses locally. The addition of a mobile commercial wash-station, and additional commercial kitchen spaces will allow us to support Hawaiʻi farmers as they continue to grow and scale up their agribusinesses.This model can be replicated and shared state-wide through the collective network of Hawaiʻi Food Hub Hui members who are also supporting farmers and value-added producers from their hubs.
