HomeMy WebLinkAboutUniversity of Hawaii at Hilo - 2020 Update to the Hawaii Statewide Agricultural Land Use BaselineRyan Perroy & Eszter Collier
2020 Update to the Hawaiʻi Statewide
Agricultural Land Use Baseline
Prepared for
Hawaiʻi Department of Agriculture
Prepared by
University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo
Spatial Data Analysis & Visualization Research Laboratory
1
Table of Contents
Acknowledgments ................................... 2
Executive Summary ................................. 3
Introduction .......................................... 6
Kauaʻi 2020 Agricultural Footprint ................ 8
Important Agricultural Lands: Kauaʻi Island .... 13
Agricultural Parks: Kauaʻi Island ................. 14
Oʻahu Island 2020 Agricultural Footprint ....... 15
Important Agricultural Lands: Oʻahu ............ 20
Agricultural Parks: Oʻahu ......................... 22
Molokaʻi 2020 Agricultural Footprint ............ 23
Lānaʻi 2020 Agricultural Footprint ............... 26
Maui 2020 Agricultural Footprint ................ 28
Hawaiʻi Island 2020 Agricultural Footprint ..... 32
Important Agricultural Lands: Hawaiʻi Island .. 40
Agricultural Parks: Hawaiʻi Island................ 41
Bibliography ......................................... 42
Appendix ............................................ 43
A1. Crop Mapping Protocols .................... 43
A2. Crop Categories & Considerations ........ 45
A3. Kaua‘i 2015 and 2020 Comparison........ 47
A4. O‘ahu 2015 and 2020 Comparison ........ 48
A5. Molokaʻi 2015 and 2020 Comparison ..... 49
A6. Lānaʻi 2015 and 2020 Comparison ........ 50
A7. Maui 2015 and 2020 Comparison .......... 51
A8. Hawai‘i 2015 and 2020 Comparison ...... 52
2
Acknowledgments
This report is dedicated to the memory of Jeffrey
Melrose and the farmers, ranchers, and other members
of the agricultural community in Hawaiʻi that have been
impacted by the COVID-19 Pandemic.
We would like to acknowledge Department of
Agriculture Director Phyllis Shimabukuro-Geiser for her
commitment to update the 2015 statewide agricultural
land use baseline and make this project a reality, and to
her staff for their generous assistance and support.
We would also like to specifically thank Doug Beaton,
Darrell Bueno, Ed Boteilho, Roberta Chun, Sylvie Cares,
Sharon Dansereau, Chris English, Noland Eskaran, Nicole
Galase, Hunter Heaivilin, Amy Koch, Natalie Kurashima,
Bruce Mathews, Brian Miyamoto, Ben Nyberg, Jesse
Potter, William Stormont, Julie Tulang, Chantal Vos,
Erin Weingarten, Heath Williams, and the many other
people and organizations that provided assistance,
insights, and information for this report.
3
Executive Summary
This report, along with the associated maps and
geospatial data layers for the islands of Kauaʻi, Oʻahu,
Molokaʻi, Lānaʻi, Maui, and Hawaiʻi, provides an update
to the more exhaustive 2015 statewide agricultural land
use baseline (Melrose et al. 2015).
In the five years between the 2015 statewide
agricultural land use baseline and this report, the
overall acreage of planted crops on the Hawaiian islands
decreased by 21% (-31,207 acres) (Table 1). This overall
decline is primarily due to the 2016 closure of the
Hawaiian Commercial & Sugar Company (HC&S) on Maui,
which removed 38,810 acres of sugarcane production
from the state.
Statewide, outside of the major decline in sugarcane,
there was an overall 7% increase in planted acres for all
other crop types from 2015 to 2020 (+7,588 acres). Of
these statewide gains, the largest was in diversified
agriculture, which rose 22% (+3,695 acres), with
approximately half of that increase coming from Maui
alone, which more than doubled its planted acreage in
diversified crops.
The statewide gains in diversified agriculture are an
important step forward in food self-sufficiency, but
more substantial increases in cropland acreage will be
needed to make significant progress towards stated
local food production targets (Act 151, Session Laws of
Hawaiʻi 2019), particularly in the face of climate
change.
Papaya, tropical fruit, and taro also saw double digit
percentage increases statewide, while the remaining
crop types saw either more modest increases or
relatively minor decreases, with the exception of dairy
which dropped 53% (-990 acres) due to a closure on
Hawaiʻi Island.
Kauaʻi, with 23,191 mapped cropped acres in 2020, saw
overall increases, largely driven by activity in seed
production (+956 acres, or 7.2%) and commercial
forestry (+816 acres, or 47%). The remaining crop types
on Kauaʻi experienced a mixture of modest changes,
including minor losses in diversified crops (-53 acres).
Oʻahu, with 23,277 cropped acres in 2020, saw increases
across all crop categories (minus papaya) during this
period, with the largest gains in diversified crops (+730
acres, or 7.4%).
Molokaʻi, with 3,874 cropped acres in 2020, was largely
stable between 2015-2020, with an overall change of
<1% in cropped and pasture areas. The largest gain was
4
in tropical fruits (+174 acres, or 405%), while the largest
loss was in pasture (-390 acres, or -1%).
Lānaʻi, with just 105 cropped acres in 2020, saw an
increase of 40 acres in diversified crops relative to
2015. Increases in agricultural productivity due to a new
indoor hydroponics project associated with Sensei Farms
Lānaʻi are not captured in this report.
Maui, with 7,718 cropped acres in 2020 (-82% from
2015), saw the most agricultural change of any of the
Hawaiian Islands during the period between 2015-2020.
The loss of sugarcane production drove an overall
decrease that was partially offset by gains in other crop
types, notably diversified crop (+1,823 acres, or 115%),
macadamia nuts (+606 acres, or 325%), and tropical
fruits (+508 acres, or 488%). Seed production (-107
acres) and pineapple (-134 acres) both decreased on
Maui, while pasture was up 6,794 acres (6%).
The situation on Hawaiʻi Island, with 62,436 cropped
acres mapped in 2020, is also mixed. Gains in most crop
types, led by diversified crops (+1,077 acres, or 33%),
were offset by losses in four crop categories
(aquaculture, commercial forestry, dairy, and
flowers/foliage/landscape). Some of these losses were a
direct result of the 2018 lower east rift zone volcanic
eruption, which engulfed a number of important
agricultural holdings. Sugarcane, absent on Hawaiʻi
Island in recent years due to past sugarcane plantation
closures, has returned in the form of a 14 acre planting
for rum production in the Hāwī area.
Pasture, which makes up 83% of the overall agricultural
footprint in the state, rose by 4,132 acres (1%), with
gains on Maui and Kauaʻi offsetting losses on Oʻahu and
Hawaiʻi Island. These losses to pasture are due to a
combination of reasons including inactivity (indicated by
significant natural vegetation regrowth), conversion to
other agricultural uses, residential development, and
minor reclassifications and adjustments relative to the
2015 baseline study.
Most recently, the COVID-19 pandemic has been
devastating for agriculture statewide. Demand for fresh
produce dropped dramatically with mandated stay-at-
home orders and closures to the tourism industry,
seriously affecting farming operations and the
agricultural workforce across Hawaiʻi. COVID-19 impacts
are not reflected in this report, as the imagery used in
our analysis was collected prior to any pandemic-
related changes or closures, but are worth mentioning
as the pandemic is reshaping the economy and will
certainly affect the stateʻs agricultural footprint in the
near future.
5
Table 1. Summary of 2020 Agricultural Footprint for the major Hawaiian Islands.
Crop Type Hawai‘i Kaua‘i Maui Moloka‘i Lāna‘i O‘ahu 2020 2015 Acres %
Aquaculture 162 183 -26 -300 670 651 19 3
Banana 599 30 64 --360 1,053 969 84 9
Coffee 6,028 3,806 944 122 -169 11,068 10,149 919 9
Commercial Forestry 20,921 2,559 36 2 -27 23,546 22,864 682 3
Dairy 865 -----865 1,855 -990 -53
Diversified Crop 4,343 1,146 3,405 1,017 95 10,595 20,601 16,904 3,697 22
Flowers / Foliage / Landscape 1,538 150 144 26 10 510 2,378 2,432 -54 -2
Macadamia Nuts 21,405 -793 7 -2 22,207 21,545 662 3
Papaya 3,207 --109 -164 3,480 2,824 656 23
Pineapple --959 --3,437 4,396 4,508 -112 -2
Seed Production -14,255 647 2,352 -7,376 24,630 23,728 902 4
Sugarcane 14 -----14 38,810 -38,796 -100
Taro 67 546 113 2 -77 805 612 193 32
Tropical Fruits 3,311 516 612 216 -260 4,915 3,980 935 23
Crop Total:62,461 23,191 7,718 3,880 105 23,277 120,632 151,831 -31,199 -21
Pasture 552,091 42,345 115,241 37,867 -18,035 765,579 761,429 4,150 1
Total Agriculture:614,552 65,536 122,959 41,747 105 41,312 886,211 913,261 -27,050 -3
2020 Crop Summary by Acreage State Total Change from 2015
6
Introduction
This report was prepared for the Hawaiʻi State
Department of Agriculture (DOA) by the University of
Hawaiʻi at Hilo Spatial Data Analysis and Visualization
(SDAV) research laboratory. It accompanies a
comprehensive set of digital spatial data that depict the
2020 footprint of agriculture crops and pasture lands on
the islands of Kauaʻi, Oʻahu, Molokaʻi, Lānaʻi, Maui, and
Hawaiʻi. These data layers are hosted by the Hawaiʻi
Statewide Planning and Geographic Information System
(GIS) Program portal at
https://planning.hawaii.gov/gis/.
The purpose of the project was to document changes to
Hawaiʻi’s agricultural footprint since the 2015 report
was released to better inform state policy makers,
managers and the broader agricultural community
regarding recent changes and trends. The five year
interval between the 2015 baseline and this report is a
major improvement over the 35 year gap between the
2015 report and the prior statewide assessment in 1980.
In addition to documenting changes over the past five
year period, we also examined the agricultural footprint
on Oʻahu, Hawaiʻi, and Kauaʻi, as it relates to lands
designated as Important Agricultural Lands by the State
Land Use Commission, pursuant to Hawaiʻi Revised
Statutes ("HRS") §§ 205-44 and -45 and Hawai'i
Administrative Rules ("HAR") §§ 15-15-98, -99, -120, and
-121. We also examined the agricultural footprint
related to active leases in the Hawaiʻi Department of
Agricultureʻs Agricultural Park Program.
The report was created from an assemblage of
geospatial datasets, primarily high-resolution (2018-
2020) satellite imagery used as a base layer for
digitization (Figure 1). Additional datasets include
existing GIS layers provided by the State of Hawai‘i’s
Office of Planning Statewide GIS Program
(https://geoportal.hawaii.gov) and other data
generously provided by landowners and managers.
Digitized crop locations and boundaries were verified
through a combination of on-the-ground site visits,
video meetings and presentations of draft layers with
agricultural stakeholders and landowners, and
solicitations for comments and feedback through a
publicly accessible online web mapping portal. In
several cases, private landowners shared their own
digital data of crop use on their properties and/or were
helpful in reviewing draft maps to confirm or correct
mapped crop boundaries.
7
These data layers represent our best efforts to capture
the scale and diversity of commercial agricultural
activity on Kauaʻi, Oʻahu, Molokaʻi, Lānaʻi, Maui, and
Hawaiʻi in 2020 and should be used for information
purposes only. The digital crop and pasture layer data
are provided for public use.
In this 2020 assessment, as in the 2015 baseline report,
in-field roads, field edges, warehouses, and related
farm structures are all part of farm related uses.
Gulches and unused lands were generally not counted.
As a result, the crop acreage numbers provided in this
report may be 10% or more than what industries might
report. That difference is not intended to correct
industry numbers but rather to express a broader metric
of the area of land that is deployed to support a given
agricultural use.
A complete description of the Crop Mapping Protocols
used in this study is included in the Appendix and
attached to the metadata associated with the provided
digital geospatial layer.
Figure 1. Satellite imagery from 2015 and 2020 showing the
establishment and digitized outline of a new 10 acre plot of
intensive diversified crops on the Waiʻanae Coast of Oʻahu.
Sources: Esri, DigitalGlobe, and Maxar.
8
Kauaʻi 2020 Agricultural Footprint
The island of Kauaʻi (Figure 2) has seen a mixture of
gains and losses across crop categories since 2015, with
an increase of 1,882 acres (8.8%) in overall cropped
area. Seed production continues to have the largest
footprint on the island, with 14,255 acres mapped in
active use (61% of the total cropped area on Kauaʻi).
Coffee continues to be the second largest crop on Kauaʻi
(3,806 acres), followed by commercial forestry (2,559
acres). Seed production, commercial forestry, and taro
all saw acreage increases >100 acres between 2015-
2020, with the remaining crop categories holding steady
or showing slight decreases (Table 2). Pasture continues
to make up the majority (65%) of agricultural acreage
on Kauaʻi at 42,345 acres.
Table 2. Summary of
Kauaʻi Island Agricultural
Footprint and changes
between 2015 (Melrose et
al. 2015) and 2020.
Kauai
Crop Type 2015 2020 Acres %
Aquaculture 183 183 0 0.0
Banana 26 30 4 15.8
Coffee 3,788 3,806 18 0.5
Commercial Forestry 1,743 2,559 816 46.8
Diversified Crop 1,199 1,146 -53 -4.4
Flowers / Foliage / Landscape 165 150 -15 -9.1
Seed Production 13,299 14,255 956 7.2
Taro 443 546 103 23.3
Tropical Fruits 463 516 53 11.4
Crop Total 21,309 23,191 1,882 8.8
Pasture 41,933 42,345 412 1.0
Total 63,242 65,536 2,294 3.6
Acreage Change (2015 to 2020)
9
Figure 2. Kauaʻi
Island Agricultural
Footprint in 2020.
10
The southwestern shore of Kauaʻi, stretching from the
Mānā coastal plain to the fertile fields below Kalāheo,
contains the largest concentrated areas of seed
production, coffee, and pasture on the island (Figure 3).
While coffee plantings and pasture lands in this region
have remained largely stable, areas in seed production
show significant changes relating to crop rotations and
buffer areas (Figure 4).
Figure 3. Agricultural footprint from the Mānā coastal plain
to Hanaʻpēpē.
Figure 4. Satellite images from 2014 and 2019 showing
extensive changes to seed production plantings north of
Kekaha. Sources: Esri, DigitalGlobe, and Maxar.
11
Southeastern Kauaʻi, from the southern point of Poʻipū
up past Hanamāulu in the moku of Līhu‘e, contains a
variety of agricultural crops intermixed with large areas
of pasture. Seed production, diversified agriculture, and
flowers/foliage/landscape are all present in this area
(Figure 5). This region also holds the greatest amount of
commercial forestry plantings on the island and saw
extensive harvesting and planting activities between
2014 to 2020 (Figure 6).
Figure 5. Agricultural footprint for southeastern Kauaʻi.
Figure 6. Satellite images from 2014, 2019, and 2020
showing extensive changes to commercial forestry
plantings south of Highway 50 above Kōloa. Sources: Esri,
DigitalGlobe, and Maxar.
12
Continuing up the eastern shore of Kauaʻi, from Wailua
to Keālia, there are smaller plantings of various crops
situated within a larger matrix of pasture lands (Figure
7). The north shore of Kauaʻi, from Moloaʻa stretching
west, presents a sequence of different crop types that
shift from diversified crops and tropical fruits to
commercial forestry to the largest concentration of
wetland taro agriculture in the state of Hawaiʻi, located
around Hanalei (Figure 8).
Figure 7. Agricultural
footprint for eastern
Kauaʻi.
Figure 8. Agricultural
footprint for the north
shore of Kauaʻi.
13
Important Agricultural Lands:
Kauaʻi Island
On the island of Kauaʻi there are 37,410 acres
designated as Important Agricultural Lands (IAL) by the
State Land Use Commission (Figure 9). Within the IALs,
51% (19,200 acres) were in active agricultural use in
2020. Pasture makes up slightly more than two-thirds of
these lands (13,173 acres) and the remaining land is
used for crops (5,763 acres) and commercial forestry
(264 acres). Of the cropped IAL land, 51% is used to
grow coffee (2,916 acres), 48% is used for seed
production (2,776 acres), and the remaining 1% is used
to grow taro, diversified crop, and banana.
Figure 9. Agricultural
footprint and Important
Agricultural Land designation
areas (yellow outline) on the
island of Kauaʻi.
14
Agricultural Parks: Kauaʻi Island
On the island of Kauaʻi, there is one active Agricultural
Park (Kekaha) totaling 160 leased acres as of 2020,
based on GIS data provided by the Department of
Agriculture (Figure 10). Of these leased acres, 94% (150
acres) were mapped as being in active cultivation in
2020. The vast majority of these (140 acres) were in
aquaculture for Kauaʻi shrimp, with the remaining 10
acres in tropical fruit.
Figure 10. Active Agricultural Park leases (red outline) on Kauaʻi.
15
Oʻahu Island 2020 Agricultural
Footprint
The island of Oʻahu (Figure 11) has seen slight gains
across almost all crop categories since 2015, and
continues to produce the majority of diversified crops in
the state, with 10,595 acres in production in 2020
(Table 3). Diversified crop, which gained over 700 acres
between 2015-2020, is followed by seed production
(7,376 acres in 2020) and pineapple (3,437 acres in
2020) as the next largest crop categories, with most
other crops composing <500 acres islandwide.
In the central plain of Oʻahu, from ʻEwa Beach (Figure
12) up to Waimea Bay on the North Shore (Figure 13),
diversified crops (8,000 acres) and seed production
(7,400 acres) continue to play major roles, with
scattered smaller plantings of banana, pineapple, and
other crop types.
Table 3. Summary of Oʻahu
agricultural footprint and
changes between 2015 (Melrose
et al. 2015) and 2020.
Oʻahu
Crop Type 2015 2020 Acres %
Aquaculture 274 300 26 9.5
Banana 345 360 15 4.3
Coffee 168 169 1 0.6
Commercial Forestry 26 27 0.2 0.8
Diversified Crop 9,865 10,595 730 7.4
Flowers / Foliage / Landscape 484 510 26 5.4
Macadamia Nuts 0 2 2 NA
Papaya 166 164 -2 -1.2
Pineapple 3,414 3,437 23 0.7
Seed Production 7,333 7,376 43 0.6
Taro 51 77 26 51
Tropical Fruits 227 260 33 14.5
Crop Total 22,353 23,277 924 4.1
Pasture 18,464 18,035 -429 -2.3
Total 40,817 41,312 495 1.2
Acreage Change (2015 to 2020)
16
Figure 11. Oʻahu
Agricultural
Footprint in 2020.
17
Two notable agricultural losses in the central plain are
located alongside the H-2 Highway: a subdivision
development, occurring on what had been 359 acres of
diversified crop lands, and the creation of the Waipio
Solar project on 515 acres of former cattle pasture
owned by NRG in Central Oʻahu (Figure 12).
Figure 12. (Left)
Agricultural
footprint in the
lower Central
Plain, pink inset
box depicts area
shown in satellite
imagery at right.
(Right) Satellite
images from 2015
and 2019 showing
development of the
Waipio Solar
project on former
pasture. Sources:
Esri, DigitalGlobe,
and Maxar.
18
Although limited sheep grazing is planned for a portion
of the Waipio Solar to manage vegetation, these two
cases provide good examples of the competing interests
for land that continue to impact agriculture in Hawaiʻi.
Figure 13. Agricultural footprint in the upper Central Plain of Oʻahu.
19
On the Waiʻanae Coast, diversified crop continues to be
an important crop category and has reached 562 acres,
an expansion of over 40 acres from the 2015
assessment. Flowers/foliage/landscape, tropical fruit,
and pasture also remain active in this area (Figure 14).
In northern Oʻahu, along the windward coast from Turtle
Bay to Kahaluʻu, there are 1,544 acres in diversified
crop, the dominant crop category in this area.
Aquaculture, banana, and flowers/foliage/landscape all
saw minor (<10 acres) increases in acreage in this area
between 2015-2020.
The Waimānalo area was largely unchanged, adding ~20
new acres of flowers/foliage/landscape, raising this
crop category up to 212 acres in this region.
Figure 14.
Agricultural
footprint on the
Waiʻanae Coast.
20
Important Agricultural Lands:
Oʻahu
On the island of Oʻahu there are 15,205 acres
designated as Important Agricultural Lands (IAL) by the
State Land Use Commission (Figures 15, 16, and 17). Of
these, 60% (9,150 acres) were in active agriculture in
2020. Pasture makes up a bit more than half of these
lands (4,957 acres) and cropped farmland (4,188 acres)
the remainder. Of the cropped IAL areas, two-thirds
(2,787 acres) is made up of seed production, followed
by 952 acres in diversified crops.
Figure 15. Agricultural footprint
and Important Agricultural Land
designation areas (yellow outline)
on upper Central Plain of Oʻahu.
21
Figure X. Important
Agricultural Lands on the
Figure 16. Agricultural footprint and Important Agricultural
Land designation areas (yellow outline) on Windward coast of
Oʻahu.
Figure 17. Agricultural footprint and Important Agricultural Land
designation areas (yellow outline) on the lower Central Plain of Oʻahu.
22
Agricultural Parks: Oʻahu
The Hawaiʻi Department of Agriculture Division of
Agricultural Resource Management operates the
Agricultural Park Program, where lands are set aside
specifically for agriculture-related activities. On the
island of Oʻahu, there are four active Agricultural Parks
(Kahuku, Kalaeloa, Waiʻanae, and Waimānalo) totaling
637 leased acres as of 2020, based on GIS data provided
by the Department of Agriculture (Figure 18). Of these
leased acres, 368 acres were mapped as being in active
cultivation in 2020, with the vast majority of these (327
acres) being in diversified crops. It is worth noting that
not all of the agricultural-related activities occurring on
these lands, specifically some agricultural plots less
than three acres in size, fallow lands, and the meat
processing operation in Kalaeloa, were mapped under
the Crop Mapping Protocols used in this study (see
Appendix).
Figure 18. Active Agricultural
Park Program leases (red outline)
on Oʻahu.
23
Molokaʻi 2020 Agricultural
Footprint
Since 2015, agriculture on Molokaʻi has remained
largely stable (Table 4, Figure 19). Minor losses in
aquaculture and pasture have been offset by increases
in other crop types, including diversified agriculture and
tropical fruits. The increased acreage in tropical fruit
(+174 acres) is the result of new planting in the
Hoʻolehua plain (Figure 20). Seed production continues
to be the largest crop on Molokaʻi (2,352 acres),
followed by diversified agriculture (1,017 acres).
Pasture continues to comprise the vast majority (91%) of
agricultural acreage on Molokaʻi at 37,867 acres,
covering an area roughly double that dedicated to
pasture on the island of Oʻahu.
Table 4.
Summary of
Molokaʻi
agricultural
footprint and
changes
between 2015
(Melrose et al.
2015) and 2020.
Moloka‘i
Crop Type 2015 2020 Acres %
Aquaculture 28 26 -3 -9.6
Coffee 123 122 0 0.0
Commercial Forestry 0 2 2 100.0
Diversified Crop 937 1,017 80 8.5
Flowers / Foliage / Landscape 26 26 0 0
Macadamia Nuts -7 7 NA
Papaya 93 109 16 17.6
Seed Production 2,342 2,352 10 0.4
Taro 2 2 0 0.0
Tropical Fruits 43 216 174 405.4
Crop Total 3,593 3,880 286 8.0
Pasture 38,261 37,867 -394 -1.0
Total 41,854 41,747 -108 -0.3
Change (2015 to 2020)Acreage
24
Figure 19.
Molokaʻi Island
Agricultural
Footprint in
2020.
25
Figure 20. Agricultural Footprint in the Hoʻolehua plain on the island of Molokaʻi.
26
Lānaʻi 2020 Agricultural Footprint
The island of Lanaʻi continues to have a relatively small
agricultural footprint, but showed a significant increase
in diversified crop acreage, rising from 54 acres in 2015
to 95 acres in 2020 (Table 5). Beyond these increases in
conventionally cropped agriculture (Figure 21, 22), an
ambitious hydroponic facility began commercial
production in 2020. Sensei Farms Lānaʻi is producing
vegetables for resorts on Lānaʻi, with plans to expand
production to help meet consumer demand across the
state.
Table 5. Summary of
Lānaʻi agricultural
footprint and changes
between 2015 (Melrose et
al. 2015) and 2020.
Figure 21. Lānaʻi
Island Agricultural
Footprint in 2020.
Sources: Esri,
DigitalGlobe, and
Maxar.
Lāna‘i
Crop Type 2015 2020 Acres %
Diversified Crop 54 95 40 74
Flowers/Foliage/Landscape 10 10 0 0
Total 65 105 40 62
Acreage Change (2015 to 2020)
27
Figure 22. Lānaʻi
Island Agricultural
Footprint in 2020.
28
Maui 2020 Agricultural Footprint
Of all the Hawaiian islands, the island of Maui has seen
the most dramatic changes to its agricultural landscape
between 2015-2020 (Table 6, Figure 23). The final
closure of the Hawaiian Commercial & Sugar Company
(HC&S) in 2016 removed 38,810 acres of sugarcane
production from the island, contributing to an overall
decline in cropped acreage of 82%. These overall losses
have been partially offset by the largest documented
increase in diversified crop observed on any of the
Hawaiian Islands over this time period, rising from 1,582
acres to 3,405 acres, an increase of 115%. Diversified
agriculture is now the largest crop on Maui, followed by
pineapple, which dropped 12% down to 959 acres.
Table 6. Summary
of Maui agricultural
footprint and
changes between
2015 (Melrose et al.
2015) and 2020.
Maui
Crop Type 2015 2020 Acres %
Banana 62 64 2 3
Coffee 545 944 399 73
Commercial Forestry 33 36 3 10
Diversified Crop 1,582 3,405 1,823 115
Flowers / Foliage / Landscape 134 144 10 8
Macadamia Nuts 186 793 606 325
Pineapple 1,094 959 -134 -12
Seed Production 754 647 -107 -14
Sugarcane 38,810 0 -38,810 -100
Taro 54 113 59 109
Tropical Fruits 104 612 508 488
Crop Total 43,359 7,718 -35,640 -82
Pasture 108,447 115,241 6,794 6
Total 151,806 122,959 -28,847 -19
Change (2015 to 2020)Acreage
29
Figure 23. Maui
Island Agricultural
Footprint in 2020.
30
Coffee and macadamia nut, the next two largest
plantings saw significant increases during this period, as
did tropical fruits. These increases are occurring not
only on former sugarcane lands (Figure 24, Figure 25),
but also with new plantings across the island (Figure
26).
Figure 24. New
plantings and
former sugarcane
lands in the area of
Kahului on Maui
Island.
31
Figure 25. (Left) Satellite image showing
sugarcane plantings in the western central
plain in 2015. (Right) Satellite image
showing the same area converted to
diversified crop or fallow fields. Sources:
Esri, DigitalGlobe, and Maxar.
Figure 26. Agricultural change,
including new plantings, in the
upcountry area of Kēōkea on
Maui Island.
32
Hawaiʻi Island 2020 Agricultural
Footprint
Since 2015, Hawaiʻi Island agriculture (Figure 27) has
faced a number of trials, from a volcanic eruption in the
Puna district and flooding and losses from Hurricane
Lane in 2018 to the recent discovery of coffee leaf rust
in October 2020. These events, along with ongoing
issues impacting pastures and cropland, such as the
spread of invasive pests like the coffee-berry borer
(Johnson and Manoukis, 2020) and Two-Lined Spittlebug
(Thorne et al. 2018), all contribute to the challenges
experienced by Hawaiʻi Island ranchers and farmers.
Despite these and other challenges, Hawaiʻi Island
continues to be the stateʻs primary producer for a
number of important crops, including coffee,
flowers/foliage/landscape, macadamia nuts, papaya,
and tropical fruit. Hawaiʻi Island also holds the vast
majority of the stateʻs acreage in commercial forestry
(20,921 acres) and pasture (552,091), though acreage in
these categories dropped slightly from 2015 (Table 7).
Table 7. Summary of
Hawaiʻi Island Agricultural
Footprint and changes
between 2015 (Melrose et
al. 2015) and 2020.
Crop Type 2015 2020 Acres %
Aquaculture 165 162 -3 -2
Banana 536 599 63 12
Coffee 5,525 6,028 503 9
Commercial Forestry 21,061 20,921 -140 -1
Dairy 1,855 865 -990 -53
Diversified Crop 3,266 4,343 1077 33
Flowers / Foliage / Landscape 1,612 1,538 -74 -5
Macadamia Nuts 21,359 21,405 46 0
Papaya 2,566 3,207 641 25
Sugarcane -14 14 N/A
Taro 61 67 6 10
Tropical Fruits 3,144 3,311 167 5
Crop Total 61,150 62,460 1310 2
Pasture 554,324 552,091 -2,233 0
Total 615,474 614,551 -923 0
Acreage Change (2015 to 2020)
33
Figure 27.
Hawaiʻi Island
Agricultural
Footprint in
2020.
34
The South Hilo District continues to be one of the more
productive agricultural areas in the state (Figure 28).
Macadamia nut, commercial forestry, banana, and
tropical fruit plots were largely unchanged from 2015-
2020, while diversified crops displayed much more
variability, driven in part by Okinawan sweet potato
planting practices.
Further north, the Hāmākua coast is home to the
majority of the stateʻs commercial forestry acreage and
a patchwork of highly productive agricultural lands
(Figure 29). This area saw the closure of the Big Island
Dairy facility in 2019, leaving the Clover Leaf Dairy in
Hāwī as the last remaining large-scale dairy in the
state. Other changes since the 2015 baseline assessment
include a slight increase in taro cultivation in the
Waipiʻo Valley, and minor changes in actively cropped
areas for tropical fruit and diversified crop categories,
including the establishment of a number of newly active
plots mauka of Pāpaʻaloa.
Figure 29. Agricultural footprint on the Hāmākua Coast.
Figure 28. Agricultural footprint for South Hilo District.
35
The agricultural footprint of North and South Kohala
remained largely stable between 2015-2020 and
continues to be dominated by pasture lands for cattle
production. In the Hāwī area, one notable new change
was the addition of 14 acres of irrigated sugarcane
cultivation as part of a distillery operation (Figure 30).
This marks the first return of commercial sugarcane
plantings on Hawaiʻi Island since the sugarcane
plantation closures in the twentieth century (Jones and
Osgood, 2015; Melrose et al. 2015).
Figure 30. Agricultural footprint in North Kohala.
36
Around the town of Waimea, a concentration of
diversified agriculture plots totaling 509 acres produce a
variety of truck crops (Figure 31).
Figure 31. Agricultural footprint around the town of Waimea.
37
The agricultural lands of North and South Kona remain
largely in coffee and macadamic nut cultivation, with
pockets of tropical fruit, flowers/foliage/landscape,
and banana. One notable change from the 2015 baseline
in this area is the addition of a new large-scale coffee
farming operation in Kealakekua (Figure 32). As of early
2020, Kona Hills, LLC, had opened ~230 acres for coffee
planting, with additional clearing and planting
underway.
In the Kaʻū district in the southern portion of Hawaiʻi
Island, there was essentially no change in the pasture or
cropped area between 2015 and 2020. Minor additions
to diversified crop acreage were mapped around
Volcano Village. In the Keaʻau area, there were slightly
expanded plantings in banana, papaya, and diversified
crops, with stable footprints in macadamia nut and
tropical fruit.
Figure 32. Agricultural footprint
in South Kona near Kealakekua,
white box indicates location of
a new large-scale coffee farm.
38
Some of the most dramatic changes on Hawaiʻi Island
occurred in the Puna district, where lava from the 2018
eruption of the Lower East Rift Zone covered almost
9,000 acres (Neal et al. 2019).
Impacted farmers have had to contend with the loss of
cropped areas and severe access issues, as a number of
fields not engulfed by lava, particularly papaya and
tropical fruit, were cut off from transportation routes.
These affected fields collectively total ~ 1,000 acres
and include diversified crop, flowers/foliage/landscape,
macadamia nut, papaya, and tropical fruit crop
categories (Figures 33 and 34).
Figure 33.
Portion of the
agricultural
footprint in Puna
District impacted
by the 2018
volcanic
eruption. Pink
inset box depicts
area shown in
satellite imagery
in Figure 34.
39
Figure 34. Satellite
images from 2015
and 2020 showing a
subset of the
agricultural and
residential area in
the Puna District
impacted by the
2018 volcanic
eruption. Sources:
Esri, DigitalGlobe,
and Maxar.
40
Important Agricultural Lands:
Hawaiʻi Island
On the island of Hawaiʻi there are 56,772 acres
designated as Important Agricultural Lands by the State
Land Use Commission. Of these, 96% (54,555 acres)
were in active agriculture in 2020. Pasture makes up
over 90% of these lands (49,812 acres) and commercial
forestry (4,743 acres) the remainder (Figure 35). There
are no cropped fields of any type on Hawaiʻi Island
within the Important Agricultural Lands designation
zone.
Figure 35. Agricultural
footprint and Important
Agricultural Land designation
areas (yellow outline) on the
island of Hawaiʻi.
41
Agricultural Parks: Hawaiʻi Island
On the island of Hawaiʻi, there are four active
Agricultural Parks (Hāmākua, Keāhole, Pāhoa, and
Panaʻewa) totaling 1,571 leased acres as of 2020, based
on GIS data provided by the Department of Agriculture
(Figure 36). Of these leased acres, more than half (887
acres) were mapped as being in active cultivation in
2020. Of these, 44% (390 acres) were in
flowers/foliage/landscape, 40% (355 acres) in pasture,
and the remainder scattered across various other crop
types. It is worth noting that not all of the agricultural-
related activities occurring on these lands, specifically
some agricultural plots less than three acres in size and
fallow fields, were mapped under the Crop Mapping
Protocols used in this study (see Appendix).
Figure 36. Active
Agricultural Park
leases (red outline) on
the island of Hawaiʻi.
42
Bibliography
Jones, C. A., & Osgood, R. V. (2015). From King Cane to
the Last Sugar Mill: Agricultural Technology and the
Making of Hawaiʻi's Premier Crop. University of Hawaiʻi
Press
Melrose, J., Perroy, R., & Cares, S. (2015). Statewide
agricultural land use baseline 2015. Hawaiʻi State
Department of Agriculture.
Neal, C. A., Brantley, S. R., Antolik, L., Babb, J. L.,
Burgess, M., Calles, K., ... & Dotray, P. (2019). The
2018 rift eruption and summit collapse of Kīlauea
Volcano. Science, 363(6425), 367-374.
Perroy, R. L., Melrose, J., & Cares, S. (2016). The
evolving agricultural landscape of post-plantation
Hawai‘i. Applied Geography, 76, 154-162.
Thorne, M.S., Wright, M., Fukumoto, G., Oishi, D.,
Wilson, S., Mack, J., and Oshiro, M. 2019. Detection and
management of Two-Lined Spittlebug (Prosapia
bicincta) on Hawaiʻi Rangelands. 72nd Annual meeting
of the Society for Range Management. Minneapolis, MN.
February 10-14, 2019.
43
Appendix
A1. Crop Mapping Protocols
The 2020 Update to the Hawaiʻi Statewide Agricultural
Land Use Baseline: Kauaʻi, Oʻahu, Molokaʻi, Lānaʻi, Maui,
and Hawaiʻi, was created from an assemblage of
geospatial datasets, primarily high-resolution (2018-
2020) satellite imagery used as a base layer for
digitization. Every effort was made to use satellite
imagery from 2020, but in a few areas with persistent
cloud cover or other issues, imagery from 2019 or 2018
was used. Additional datasets used in the project
include GIS layers provided by the State of Hawai‘i’s
Office of Planning Statewide GIS Program and other
data provided by major landowners and managers.
Digitized crop locations and boundaries were verified
through a combination of on-the-ground site visits,
video meetings and presentations of draft layers with
agricultural stakeholders and landowners, and
solicitations for comments and feedback through a
publicly accessible online web mapping portal. In
several cases, private landowners shared their own
digital data of crop use on their properties and/or were
helpful in reviewing draft maps to confirm or correct
mapped crop boundaries.
In this 2020 update, as in the 2015 baseline report, in-
field roads, field edges, warehouses, and related farm
structures are considered part of farm-related uses.
Gulches and unused lands were generally not counted.
As a result, the crop acreage numbers provided in this
report may be 10% or more than what industries might
report. That difference is not intended to correct
industry numbers but rather to express a broader metric
of the area of land deployed to support a given
agricultural use.
These data layers represent our best efforts to capture
the scale and diversity of commercial agricultural
activity on Kauaʻi, Oʻahu, Molokaʻi, Lānaʻi, Maui, and
Hawaiʻi in 2020. We have made every effort to make all
images, maps, graphs, data, and other information
provided accurate and error-free. However, we do not
guarantee the accuracy of any images, maps, graphs,
data, or other information. All content is provided
without warranty of any kind and is not intended for any
regulatory use. The digital crop and pasture layer data
are provided for public use and for informational
purposes only. If you find any errors in this work, please
contact Ryan Perroy at rperroy@hawaii.edu so that we
can correct them.
44
The University of Hawai‘i at Hilo Spatial Data Analysis
and Visualization (SDAV) Laboratory carried out the
work under the direction of Dr. Ryan Perroy. Eszter
Collier was the primary geospatial analyst and
cartographer, and Erin Weingarten, Hunter Heaivilin,
and Ben Nyberg provided additional project support.
Funding for the 2020 Update to the Hawaiʻi Statewide
Agricultural Land Use Baseline: Kauaʻi, Oʻahu, Molokaʻi,
Lānaʻi, Maui, and Hawaiʻi was provided by the Hawaiʻi
State Department of Agriculture.
The following protocols were used to generate the 2020
Agricultural Land Use spatial layers:
§ This project focused on commercial agricultural
operations with a three-acre minimum crop mapping
area. In recognition of the importance of smaller scale
producers to Hawaiʻi’s agricultural community,
commercial operations less than three acres were
included where they could be reasonably identified
from the satellite imagery.
§ Mapped units follow actual cropped areas as identified
in satellite imagery, not TMK parcel boundaries.
§ Agricultural lands that did not display actual
vegetation growth but appeared to be part of an active
agricultural rotation (freshly tilled fields, etc.), were
included in acreage summaries.
§ For papaya and other crops that rotate every three to
four years, mapping efforts focused on active
production areas and did not include fallowed fields.
§ Packing or processing facilities and in-field access
roads were generally included in acreage summaries.
§ Homes, reservoirs, unfarmable gulches, and major
roadways separating field areas were not mapped.
§ “Agri-scaping” of private residences was not mapped.
§ Small backyard orchards and what appear to be home
use vegetable gardens were not mapped.
§ Equestrian uses, including arenas and boarding and
riding facilities, were not mapped.
§ Rooster cultivation was not mapped.
§ Piggeries were not mapped.
§ Poultry farms were not mapped.
§ Industrial meat processing facilities were not mapped.
45
A2. Crop Categories & Considerations
§ Aquaculture includes active shrimp farms, working
fishponds, algae raceways, and research/production
facilities.
§ Bananas include fields in contiguous plantings larger
than 2-3 acres. Throughout the state, bananas are also
cultivated in gulches, along farm boundaries, and in
small patches within smaller, diversified farm
operations. These smaller mixed plantings are generally
incorporated into the surrounding farm and labeled as
Diversified Crops.
§ Coffee includes both larger plantation-type scale
operations and smaller farm plantings larger than two
acres in coffee growing regions like Kona, Kaʻū, and
elsewhere. The North and South Kona region on Hawaiʻi
Island were difficult to map accurately based on a
practice some farmers have adopted to plant both
macadamia nuts and coffee on the same ground, making
it challenging to confidently discern these coffee-
macadamia crop boundaries from satellite imagery.
§ Commercial Forestry plantings include both short and
long rotation tree crops. Plantings include eucalyptus
and other species intended for timber, fiber or energy
production, and higher value hardwoods like koa and
mahogany planted for eventual commercial harvest and
not for native forest restoration.
§ Dairy includes core milking and on-farm processing
facilities, the surrounding pastures, and croplands under
active dairy use.
§ Diversified Crops includes a wide range of products
that are grown either outdoors or in greenhouses. The
category includes many of Hawaiʻi’s small farms and
much of its local, fresh vegetables including tomato,
cucumbers, leaf crops, beans, and asparagus. This
category also includes smaller plantings such as banana,
tropical fruit, papaya, and coffee that were too small to
map out individually. Also included in the category are
export crops such as Okinawan sweet potato, basil, and
Asian spices.
§ Flowers/Foliage/Landscaping includes a wide variety
of products including hothouse or shade cloth grown
orchids, anthuriums, tropical flowers, potted nursery
plants, field stock, sod farms, and landscape trees.
§ Macadamia Nuts include orchards that appear to be
actively maintained and harvested. Orchards range from
hundreds of acres in South Kona, Kaʻū, and Puna to
small and mid-size plantings throughout Hawaiʻi Island
and a new site on Oʻahu.
46
§ Papayas are mapped in areas where significant
commercial papaya production occurs. Mapping efforts
focused on lands that appeared to be planted and in
active production. Fallow lands that might be available
for future papaya planting were not mapped but are an
important part of what the papaya industry needs to
produce in a sustainable fashion. Smaller plantings of
papaya on mixed-crop farms are mapped as Diversified
Crops.
§ Pasture includes areas in active commercial cattle
operation where fencing is apparent and water troughs
and/or cattle trails can be identified. Small pasture
plots in diverse, rural homesteads were not the focus of
this mapping effort but were included where larger
parcels and contiguous pasture areas were present.
Lands that were formerly in pasture use but have now
been purchased by the military, the National Park
Service, or withdrawn from pasture in favor of native
forest restoration were not included in the pasture
layer. Rangelands that are fenced and grazed only
seasonally were mapped as pastureland.
§ Pineapples include areas planted in large to mid-size
operations primarily on Oʻahu. Smaller plantings mixed
within smaller diversified farm operations are mapped
and labeled as Diversified Crops.
§ Seed Production includes all arable lands in use by the
seed companies at the time of this survey. Areas
depicted include in-field roads, pollen drift buffers, and
areas managed for future crop rotation. Net acres
actually planted in corn or other seed crops will be
substantially less than the gross acres depicted. The
industry estimates that they use approximately 25% of
their farmable land at any time for active growing.
§ Taro includes crops grown in wetland settings only.
Dryland taro is included in the Diversified Crops
category.
§ Tropical Fruit includes a range of products such as
breadfruit, rambutan, avocado, longan, lychee, citrus,
cacao, and other orchard fruit trees planted for
commercial harvest. Small backyard orchards were not
mapped and are not counted in the summary of tropical
fruit acreage.
47
A3. Kaua‘i 2015 and 2020 Comparison
Sources: Melrose et al.
2015 and this report.
48
A4. O‘ahu 2015 and 2020 Comparison
Sources: Melrose et al.
2015 and this report.
49
A5. Molokaʻi 2015 and 2020 Comparison
Sources: Melrose et al.
2015 and this report.
50
A6. Lānaʻi 2015 and 2020 Comparison
51
A7. Maui 2015 and 2020 Comparison
Sources: Melrose et al.
2015 and this report.
Sources: Melrose et al.
2015 and this report.
52
A8. Hawai‘i 2015 and 2020 Comparison
Sources: Melrose et al.
2015 and this report.