My name is Yoshito (yoshi) L'Hote CEO for Aina Hookupu o Kilauea (the gifted lands of Kilauea, AHK), here on the Northshore of Kaua'i.
AHK's main project is the development of a 75-acre parcel of land, the Kilauea Community Agricultural Center(KCAC), located in the beautiful North Shore of Kaua'i, Hawaii. Our mission is:
To improve the environmental, social, and economic well-being of the Kilauea, Kaua'i, Hawai'i community by providing an organization through which the people of Kilauea can I} manage the donation of funds or real estate, 2} engage in a cooperative effort and stewardship agreement with governmental agencies and other organizations on projects beneficial to the Kilauea community, and 3} encourage other constructive activities aimed at protecting agricultural, cultural, historical, and natural resources of the Kilauea area.
We are a relatively young non-profit (created in 2015) but have grown tremendously over the past year and are hoping to maintain this momentum, by spreading the Aloha and our Hawaiian values. we are promoting a regenerative community where everything is connected modeled after our regenerative agriculture.
We have been successful at developing 18 acres of the farm, bringing water and power to the site as well as two 3,200 sq ft pavilions, public bathrooms, and 102 parking stalls for our farmers market development. We have an internship program to grow the next generation of Aina(land) Warriors that understand to prioritize the land, each other, and their community to farm our site, KCAC.
Agriculture is quickly disappearing in Hawaii, and 90% of our food is being imported while our economy solely depends on the tourism industry. Last year with COVID, everyone realized the importance of food security and a diversified economy. We were able to get a USDA Farm to family contract and injected 1.5 million into the economy by supporting farmers, creating jobs (20 mostly for kids 18-24) to aggregate and feed our entire island with fresh locally grown produce to mostly our elderly and in-need population. We are still distributing 500 boxes a week (we were doing 2000) but had to furlough most of our staff as we are still trying to privately fund our boxes program.
The financial hardship of running a young nonprofit made me realize the importance of creating profitability for AHK. I realize that the best way for KCAC to be profitable and share those profits is to vertically integrate the farm and have the ability to move the profitability up and down the integration. We are located next to one of the most visited attractions on Kaua'i, and if we can build our store/certified kitchen/ fruit stand (Johnny's Shack) we will be solvent and sustainable, not just for our farm but also for our non-profit to continue to support our community and island while creating an example for other community to bring each other together and reclaim our community and sovereignty around food and health.
