Pono Pacific, Hawai‘i’s largest private natural resource conservation company, has just announced that Kuilima Farm, which they manage for Turtle Bay Resort, is now the nation’s first large-scale farm-to-resort operation.
All restaurants at the 408-room resort use fresh produce grown at Kuilima Farm, which is 468 acres of Ag land located directly across the street from the luxury resort. The farm currently produces over 1,000 pounds of produce per week. Chefs at Turtle Bay Resort source 700 pounds of fresh produce per week from the farm, including salad greens, vegetables, herbs, and fruits for the resort’s five dining outlets.
Turtle Bay owns the 468 acres that make up Kuilima Farm, which is protected forever as Ag land. They are committed to increasing food security and reducing carbon footprint, which includes working closely with the Chefs at Turtle Bay to meet their needs. There has also been some big improvements recently to achieve this farm-to-resort status.
To name a few, Kuilima Farm recently launched a hydroponic lettuce growing facility, which produces 8 varieties of lettuce 25 percent faster than growing in soil— currently producing over 1,200 lbs of lettuce greens per month. In the last ten months, the farm has diversified and increased food distribution six-fold. Kuilima Farm recently completed and passed the USDA audit, achieving Food Safety certification. Only 32 farms out of 533 in the state have USDA Food Safety certification. This certification also allows farmers to sell produce to a wider variety of wholesalers and stores.
If that wasn’t impressive enough, Kuilima Farms were able to expand and improve farm stands as well. They post regularly on Instagram for fresh new updates.
Their goal is to be a place that provides fresh produce for the community while connecting guests and residents back to the land. And that offer tours to share it with everyone, visit kuilimafarm.com to sign up for a tour.
