COM 0212.129 1996-1998 - Laserfiche WebLink

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Apri124, 1997 Dear Council Members: . As the current Vice President of Hawaii Organic ~~~~s~s9ciafi~n 1~iO~), I must tell you that our organization, which has f200 members state e, oes not endorse either the expenditure of county funds or the passage of any resolutions pro~n~g';or ~a~~ the construction and operations of an irradiation facility. The use of irradigjtp~l(al~'d ISa~t- treatment is expressly forbidden under the federal Organic Food Production Act (OFPA~originally passed in the ]990 Farm Bill and which will be signed into law during this calendar year. The law mandates that any product sold as "organic", or using any adjective implying organic, must be certified by an accredited certifying agency. There are currently between 70-75 certified organic farming operations throughout the state, grossing approximately $7 million in gross sales this past year with over 1,000 acres certified for organic agriculture production. This estimate does not capture the value contributed by uncertified organic farms which may be considerable. In contrast, the sale of exotic tropical fruits contributed $1.1 million in 1995. There are two Hawaii-based organizations offering certifications which comply with the federal standards devised by the NOSB (National Organic Standards Board): HOFA which is anon-profit (SO1C6), and our affiliate KOLA (Kauai Organic Farmers Association). The establishment of this vital and growing sector of local agriculture has been done almost entirely on private investment with little assistance from local government, the University of Hawaii, Cooperative Extension, or the state Department of Agriculture. At the national level, the high-growth organic foods industry has been increasing sales by greater than 20% for each of the last six years with total sales of $2.8 billion in 1995. Direct and export sales accounted for $718.8 million of that amount (New Hope Communications, "Market Analysis" 1996). Instead of being a "flash in the pan" as was predicted in 1990, organic foods have emerged from a niche market status to the mainstream marketing sector. Furthermore, I am along-term resident on the Big Island with undergraduate degrees in Horticulture (San Francisco College) and Agbusiness (UHH), a Masters in Economics (1JI1M) and I am a PhD candidate in Agricultural and Resource Economics (UHM). I farm organically grown produce for local markets and cut-flower orchids for both local and export markets. I am a certified organic inspector and do consulting work in alternative energy issues. Aside from my volunteer work for HOFA, I am active in many agricultural and community organizations such as the Big Island Sustainable Communities Association (BISCA) which I serve as President of the Board, the Low- Input Sustainable Agriculture for Hawaii project (LISA) which [serve as a Board member, and Pakaka Road Association which I serve as the Secretary/Treasurer. As an applied economist and taxpayer of this county, l presented County Council members Aaron Chung and John Santangelo with a list of questions which need to be answered before an informed decision can be made on this matter (See attachment A). I am concerned about the following matters in the context of the appropriation of $2 million dollars for use on an irradiation facility. 1 Ww~r au. 212' ~ 1 ru. x. FNb~,Ct'f' Rei. Hate 'APR 2 4 tnm _