Nearly 30 acres of land preserved for generations of farmers
Jul 29, 2024
Twenty-eight acres of land are now protected permanently as farmland after the completion of the conservation easement. Island Harvest, in partnership with the Hawai‘i Land Trust (HILT) and the Natural Resources Conversation Service (NRCS) began the process of purchasing the conservation easement in 2020. In addition to NRCS, Ulupono Initiative, the Freeman Foundation and other donors provided funding to purchase the easement.
The parcel of land, which is equivalent to roughly about 40 American football fields, will continue to be used to grow food. Island Harvest, founded by Kohala resident Jim Trump, transitioned former sugar cane lands into organic and regenerative macadamia nut farming, providing jobs for local families. Prior to purchasing the protected 28 acres in 2020, Island Harvest farmed macadamia nuts exclusively on short term licenses.
“We are grateful to participate in land conservation and the protection of agriculture in our Kohala community,” said Nathan Trump, Island Harvest general manager and son of Jim. “Farming is not easy, but with support from Ulupono and others, we feel confident in investing in the land and our community as we seek to produce food to sustain ourselves and others.”
With the high agricultural land costs and threats of land use conversion in Hawai‘i impacting sustainable farming, conversation easements have been implemented since 2007. These preserve agricultural land and allow the owners to permanently limit developmental rights. This practice helps maintain the farm’s agricultural use and provides financial compensation to the landowners, making farming a more viable vocation.
Island Harvest’s conservation easement aims to preserve the rural character and agricultural integrity of Kohala. This easement is the second project under the partnership with HILT and NRCS since 2020 that has offered federal funding to protect Hawai‘i’s agricultural lands. NRCS holds more than 5 million acres of conservation easements across the nation. Jim Trump said in a news release that Island Harvest is looking forward to growing a variety of orchid crops in the nutrient rich soil that is part of its expanded farm.
Read the article by Big Island Video News
Photo Courtesy: HILT and Island Harvest.