John Schilf, Foodland’s produce and meat buyer, visited the Kino‘ole Farmers Market on Saturday. He chatted with each vendor and told us all that Foodland is very interested in supporting local food producers. That gave farmers a big boost.

Of course, the economics need to work for both sides. The rumor going around the farmers market is that two large farmers on the Big Island, and a bunch of small farmers, are thinking of calling it quits. The reasons have to do with rising costs of fertilizer, supplies and transportation, coupled with slowing retail sales. Distributors are calling them up at the last minute saying, “Don’t ship tomorrow.” The farmer has sunk costs, and after a few of these calls they are asking, “Why am I doing this?”

On Friday, I received a press release from the Potash Corporation of America. Workers there just went on strike.

At Hamakua Springs, we are facing the exact same problems as the small farmers. I mentioned to John that we are working on getting a hydroelectric generator online soon, which will cut our $15,000/month electric bill to less than half that. We plan on cooling and consolidating Hamakua Coast farmers’ products and shipping together, so we can lower each others’ freight costs.

A writer from the magazine Conde Nast Traveler came to visit us today. I told her that I was the only person from Hawai‘i to attend the Peak Oil conference in Houston this past October, where I learned that the world oil supply has nearly hit its peak and will soon start to decline.

Because agriculture is so dependent on petroleum, we need to adjust to these new conditions and make ourselves self-sustaining. We need to ensure that our food supply is secure. This is why all farmers, big and small, on all islands, in high and low elevations and on the dry and wet sides of the island need to come together to help one another thrive.

The Hamakua Coast can be the breadbasket of this state. We have adequate sunshine, good soil and more than enough water (our rainfall exceeds 140 inches per year). But farmers are in trouble right now, and the state needs to step up to help farmers.

The state must let Hawai‘i’s people know that the world has changed and that we must learn to sustain ourselves. This is not a luxury. This is about survival.