Sen. Jarrett Keohokalole is probing the department for evidence of what he believes to be a ‘shadow policy’ of favoring industries the Department of Agriculture and Biosecurity is in charge of regulating.

As Hawaiʻi continues to pinch pennies and fill holes created by federal cuts, lawmakers may have to choose between bills designed to bolster local food or fight invasive species.

Few departments met the official 10% goal last year. While cost, quality and lack of consistent supply are concerns, the current pace doesn’t bode well for the larger push to wean the islands off imported food.

Hawaiʻi island residents have been tracking coconut rhinoceros beetles’ destruction throughout the islands. Fearing the same for their home, they’re urging the state to move faster.

Lease negotiations continue despite the company issuing a mass layoff notice earlier this month.

It has been almost three years since the state agreed to take Lake Wilson and Wahiawā Dam off Dole’s hands, but it has yet to take possession of the hazardous system.

The state pest reporting platform 643Pest received a few hundred reports annually until 2023, when the floodgates opened for coconut rhinoceros beetles. 

Senators are troubled by what they see as slow progress from the Department of Agriculture and Biosecurity, which is struggling to find staff to keep invasive species at bay.

From kalo to cacao, farmers are adapting to effects of a changing climate by fusing traditional Hawaiian practices with new, regenerative agricultural techniques to save soils, streams and reefs.

Tactics vary by island in the ongoing fight to save Hawaiʻi’s iconic palms from coconut rhinoceros beetles.