Cooking up change: school regional kitchens to boost local agriculture

Aug 26, 2025

The Hawaiʻi State Department of Education (HIDOE) recently shared its plans for a network of regional centralized kitchens across the state. These facilities will modernize school meal production and create new opportunities for Hawai‘i’s farmers. HIDOE serves more than 103,000 school meals each day and plans include opening two regional kitchens on Oʻahu, two on Hawaiʻi Island, and one each on Kauaʻi, Maui and Molokaʻi. 

The first facility, planned for Central O‘ahu’s Whitmore Village and projected to open in fall 2027, will be built in three phases, ultimately producing up to 60,000 meals per day for public schools across multiple O‘ahu complex areas.

In a news release, HIDOE superintendent Keith Hayashi said: “Our vision is to build a food system that supports local farmers, reaches our 30% local sourcing goal by 2030 and gives students access to better, fresher meals,  The regional kitchen in Central O‘ahu is our first step to making that vision a reality. It will be a place to test, learn, and eventually scale this model across the state.”

Learn more about the plan and the anticipated timeline in this press release.

Photo Courtesy: Hawaiʻi State Department of Education