What you need to know about Hawai'i Constitutional Amendment 2 on the November Ballot.

Next Tuesday, voters statewide will face five constitutional amendments, two of which relate to agriculture. Get to know what these amendment questions mean before heading to the polls so you can choose either Yes or No, since a blank vote counts as a No.  Here's what you need to know about Amendment 2, which would support the local food industry and agriculture. Here's what it says:

"Shall the State be authorized to issue special purpose revenue bonds and use the proceeds from the bonds to assist agricultural enterprises on any type of land, rather than only important agricultural lands?"

What it Means: Special purpose revenue bonds are issued to allow private investors to give loans to borrowers-say, a farmer. The investor, not the state, is responsible for paying back the funds if the borrower falls short. These loans come with a lower interest rate, which benefits the borrower, and the interest is tax-free, which benefits the investor. The state does nothing other than facilitate, meaning no taxpayer money is spent, and the state's credit is not affected if the borrower doesn't make payments.

Right now, only 6 percent of Hawai'i is designated as important agricultural lands. It's a lengthy and complicated process to apply, says Brandon Lee of Ulupono Initiative, and the designation requires the lands must be used only as ag lands, never for any other purpose, such as development. Farmers on these lands are allowed to seek special purpose revenue bonds; though, according to Lee, none has been granted in the past four years. "There is an allocation [of bonds]," Lee says. Because the state can't allow the special bonds for every single project, there are designated categories, such as early childhood education and nonprofit healthcare facilities. "But, roughly, in four years, four or five projects have been approved as special purpose revenue bonds each year, and none of them under agriculture. Ag hasn't gotten its fair share."

A YES VOTE IS A VOTE FOR LOCAL FOOD

A BLANK VOTE COUNTS AS A NO

In order for the amendment to be adopted, more than 50 percent of all voters must vote Yes. "One of our concerns is that people are going to read the question, see all the technical language, think it's complicated and leave it blank," Lee says. Don't let a blank speak for you, get educated:  

The above was excerpted from an article in the Honolulu Magazine by Katrina Valcourt. For the full text, go to http://www.honolulumagazine.com/Honolulu-Magazine/Biting-Commentary/October-2014/What-You-Need-to-Know-About-Hawaii-Constitutional-Amendment-2/#.VFJW0ktLyFK

For more information on the vote, visit  http://www.voteyesforlocalfood.com sponsored by the Local Food Coalition. The blog/website provides in-depth information and testimonials from Michele Galimba of Kuahiwi Ranch, Shin Ho of Ho Farms, Ashley Lukens from the Hawai'I Center for Food Safety, Mark Noguchi from the Pili Group, Chris Manfredi of the Hawai'I Farm Bureau Federaion, and Alex Franco of the Hawai'I Cattlemen's Council.

The other amendment relating to agriculture, Amendment 5, proposes that the state become authorized to issue special purpose revenue bonds to qualifying dam and reservoir owners. Water is a public safety issue and many farmers in the Local Food Coalition also need funds to improve their water facilities in order to operate.

With the global population expected to approach 9 billion by 2050 and climate change altering agricultural conditions, the world is "entering a perfect storm of challenges to global food security," according to Thomas Lumpkin, an international expert in sustainable agricultural development who will speak at a free lecture at the University of Hawaii Architecture Auditorium. 

In addition to population growth and climate change, challenges to food security include changing diets, rising prices, depletion of natural resources, soil degradation and erosion, falling water tables and urban-rural competition for surface water, Lumpkin says. But promising technologies can help address the threat.

According to the United Nations, one in nine people worldwide do not have enough to eat. Yet global food production is increasing by a mere 1 percent per year, far behind the 70 percent increase needed to keep pace with population growth.

Dr. Lumpkin's report from the front lines in the developing world is particularly relevant in Hawaiʻi, where the cost of living, competition for resources and dependence on imported food creates our own concerns about food security.

Dr. Lumpkin attended UH Mānoa as an East-West Center grantee, earning his MS and PhD in agronomy at UH Mānoa's College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resources and was the College's Outstanding Slumnus of the Year in 2014.

For more information about Thomas Lumpkin and the presentation, go tohttp://www.hawaii.edu/news/2014/10/29/international-leader-to-discuss-global-food-security/ 

(This is not a Slow Food O'ahu event but might be of interest to our members)

Latin Cuisine with Aloja - November 12, 2014 6:00 - 9:00 p.m.

Cactus Bistro, 767 Kailua Road (Davis Building), Kailua 

Slow Foodies and friends are invited to a special dinner prepared by Cactus Bistro especially for our members. Chef owner John Memering embodies the principles of Slow Food in the acquisition and preparation of the foods that he serves. John's menus include as much as 60 to 70 percent local grown ingredients. He came to Hawaii 11 years ago well versed in the locavore movement. Memering credits O'ahu Fresh, his supplier, for bringing him the freshest products local farmers have to offer in any given week, often changing his menu depending upon the availability of items. Cactus Bistro specializes in Latin cuisine. Cactus is a celebration of the cuisines fo the new Americas with Aloha, transporting the flavors, culinary traditions and techniques from Central and South America as well as Cuba, Puerto Rico, and Mexico. Cactus features local produce, Shinsato Farms pork from Kahalu'u, Kulana and Kuahiwi beef, veal, wild boar from the Big Island, and sustainably caught or farmed seafood from the island chain.

Our menu for the evening (subject to change based upon the availability of ingredients) is as follows:

* Hau'ula tomato caldo frio, Kaffir lime, "Nalo" epazote espuma, Reginito parmesana churro with a sparkling glass of Argentinian champagne. 

* Go Farm's, freshly ground, corn canjica, wood, roasted Hamakua mushrooms, Tomatillo marmaletta, Malbec poached Waianae chicken egg, roasted bone marrow, kale chicharrone.

* Ensalada, lightly cured Ho Farm's tomatoes, Waialua, Sharwill avocado, grilled hearts of palm, Sumida watercress, Tokyo Negi escabeche', crispy Cholco corn, Kunia pineapple, chile Rocoto vinagreta.

* Troll, day boat island fish & imu style, Shinsato Farm's pork bell "Barbaqoa", roasted in local banana leaves. Quinoa scented with jalapeno & Huacatay, locally sourced accoutrements

* Andean green pumpkin flan, bitter orange caramel, Madre chocolate foam, Big Island cocoa nibs.

The cost is $45 for members; $55 for non-members. Attendance is limited to 20 people. Alcohol is not included but may be purchased at the dinner. To register, go to bit.ly/sfoevents

UH Pacific Business Center's breadfruit project wins national economic development award

A  University of Hawai'i project to promote and expand breadfruit use in the Pacific has won a top award from the  University Economic Development Association (UEDA).  The Pacific Regional Breadfruit Initiative, a project of UH's Pacific Business Center Program (PBCP), won UEDA's award for research and analysis in Santa Fe, New Mexico.

The Pacific Regional Breadfruit Initiative's success can be attributed to the groundbreaking research and analysis led by the National Tropical Botanical Garden Breadfruit Institute and its Director Diane Ragone. That research affirmed the many uses of the breadfruit tree and fruit, or ʻulu, in Hawaiian.

Breadfruit is gluten-free and the U.S. market demand for gluten-free products is projected to hit $15.5 billion in 2016. Major byproducts of breadfruit include the breadfruit sap that is 100 percent organic latex, and the breadfruit flower, which contains several powerful chemical compounds more potent than those used in the leading synthetic insect repellent on the market. The tree's wood is resistant to marine worms and termites. The breadfruit tree also has a high salinity tolerance, enabling it to survive inundation from rising tides where traditional food crops such as taro, banana, tapioca and yams cannot.

PBCP envisions Hawaiʻi as the major processing, refinement and export hub to the U.S. market for sustainable and gluten-free food products, such as flour made from breadfruit. The Commonwealth of the Northern Marianas Islands would serve a similar function for the Asian market.

For more information, go to http://www.hawaii.edu/news/2014/10/28/uh-pacific-business-centers-breadfruit-project-wins-national-economic-development-award/

Support from the  Ulupono Initiative of Hawaiʻi helped to launch the Pacific Regional Breadfruit Initiative's inaugural Breadfruit Summit in 2012. There will be a Melanesian breadfruit summit in early 2015 and a Pacific Regional Breadfruit Conference is being planned for October 2015 in Hawaiʻi.

Read  the full story at http://www.hawaii.edu/news/article.php?aId=6825   

Slow Food O'ahu Convivium website  

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