Ailing Farm Industry Needs Help From Legislature This Year

Surfing Goat Dairy

Thousands of papaya trees felled under cover of night, goats kidnapped, Big Island farmers’ prized coffee crops destroyed by a coffee borer beetle — Hawaii farmers have had a tough year.

This legislative session, lawmakers are pushing an assortment of bills to try to ease their troubles.

Proposals include increasing penalties for eco-terrorism, boosting feed subsidies, using dogs that can sniff out non-native species such as stowaway snakes, and implementing state mandates for increasing the amount of food grown locally.

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