Hawaii Representative Jessica Wooley on agriculture and food security

Unstable markets and volatile commodity prices have made food security one of the top priorities for Rep. Jessica Wooley, the new chair of the Hawaii state House standing committee on agriculture. Wooley, who also has a degree in agriculture and resource economics, warns the recession revealed a critical vulnerability to food and energy shortages that require broader market diversification to buffer against a future crisis.

I spoke with Rep. Wooley over the phone to learn more about how elected leaders can address the need for food sustainability in America’s most remote state as well as her take on the direction of the all-new 27th Legislature of Hawaii. With hot button issues such as the future of the Act 55 (2011) Public Land Development Corporation, renewable energy income tax credits and marijuana legalization all being considered this session, Hawaii is truly the state to watch for significant change this year.

Danny de Gracia: Representative, Hawaii has a completely new state legislature with new members and a new leadership team. Just last week was Opening Day and I see that you have a new assignment as the chair of the House committee on agriculture. So how does that feel and what’s your thoughts on how this year’s session will go?

Representative Jessica Wooley: I’m very excited about this session. I think we will have hearings on issues that have not been heard adequately in the last few sessions, so I’m really looking forward to that and I think new voices will make for a better policy. I think we’ll have a more inclusive discussion so that everyone’s at the table.

DDG: That sounds great. What would you say are some of your primary legislative goals as the new chair of agriculture?

Rep. Wooley: My priority is putting more local food on local plates. I think that we can work on the entire food chain in a more systematic way. I think that agriculture is in many ways very basic – land, water, some infrastructure processing and labor.

It’s one of the best industries to be able to focus on and I think that we have an opportunity to use this time because everybody is ready for a change. Right now also with food security issues, I think we’re realizing how critical it is that we focus on preserving our agriculture and investing in it.

DDG: Well you know a lot of our readers all around the nation when they think of Hawaii, they still think of the plantation days when we exported a lot of sugar cane, pineapple and other things but today in reality Hawaii is not quite the same agricultural engine that it used to be.

What happened to the agricultural economy? Is that just a sign of the times or do you think Hawaii put too much emphasis on tourism development and kind of lost its agrarian roots? What do you think happened?

Original Article Here