Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 40, Number 11, 1 November 2023 — GROWING PILINA [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

GROWING PILINA

KĀKO'O 'OIHANA «ŌIWI

Lehia Apana and Brad Bayless, owners of Polipoli Forms in Woi'ehu, Maui, ore dedicoted to ogro-forestry - cultivating Polynesion food plonts in regenerotive "food forests" using troditionol methods, including planting occording to the koulono mohino (Howoiion moon colendor). Their forming proctices eomhine lndigenous wisdom ond modern knowledge. - Courtesy Photos

By Adam Keawe Manalo-Camp V t all started around 2011. I began learning ' I about GMOs and Monsato. I wanted to I know the mystery of what is in our food _A_ and what, exaetly, we were eating. So we began by planting a garden in the baekyard to grow some of our own food and I loved it," said Lehia Apana explaining the start of her journey as a farmer. Around the same time, Apana began to eat kalo every day ffom Hui No Ke Ola Pono's Simply Healthy Cafe. "Growing up, kalo was a luxury item. But when I was able to eat kalo regularly, I began to have a pilina whh Hāloa. I eould feel my aneestors. Having aeeess to kalo was meaningful, and kalo was able to meet me where I was at the time." Inspired by her growing pilina with Hāloa, Apana reaehed out to experieneed farmers as mentors, adopted a lo'i kalo, and began to researeh Indigenous methods of agrieulture ineluding agroforests - also known as food forests. "The more I learned, the more I felt that pilina. I wanted others to have that pilina too. I wanted kalo to meet them where they were at." Apana and her husband, Brad Bayless, both had stable eareers, but the land ealled to them. "I was hesitant at first, but I knew that farming was what I wanted to do," Apana shared. "Working on the land makes you think differently. You also begin to appreeiate how our kūpuna were efheient resouree managers." As if a hō'ailona, 3 aeres of land in Wai'ehu in the

'ili of Polipoli eame up for sale in 2017. Apana was able to purehase the land and that was the beginning of Polipoli Farms, a "heart eentered" business that fosters eonneetion. "When we arrived, it was eovered in invasive grass. We knew there was an 'auwai somewhere,

but it was ehoked out," Apana reealled. "It took over two years to elear the land. But little by little, as we eleared, we found a lo'i kalo that was onee there and that we did not know about. That was a big smaek on the forehead. It showed us that was what the land wanted us to restore." She notes that the region where Polipoli is loeated is ealled "Nā Wai 'Ehā," the plaee where the four major rivers of Maui Komohana (West Maui) meet. At one time this was one of the largest kalo produeing regions in all of Hawai'i. That ehanged when the area was taken over by sugareane plantations. "Sugareane and erops like pineapple extraeted from the aina and broke down our food system leaving us to the point that we now import more than 85% of our food," Apana said. "We need to reverse that, not only by enaging in farming, but by supporting our farmers. When you buy from a mahi'ai (farmer), you are empowering ev-

ery mahi'ai. Anyone who eats is part of the food system and what you ehoose to eat has an impaet." When she first started, Apana said that finding resourees to begin the farm was a huge ehallenge, partieularly due to the high eosts of land, labor, shipping, establishing a support infrastrueture, plus aeeess to water and eompetition ffom eheaper imports. "But these are struggles that farmers all faee," she noted. "Building pilina is important espeeially when you are starting," Apana refleeted. "Farmers help eaeh other out. You eannot aet any 'kine. Building pilina is a kuleana. When I look baek at the moments in the begining of Polipoli Farms, and people who helped me, pilina always stands out. When the pandemie hit, and reeently with the Lahaina fires, the pilina you have with the community is what helps you through any crisis." Apana added, "For Hawaiians, the land is personified. The land is kūpuna. Ihe land is family. It is watered with our tears - not just tears of sadness but tears of joy. Having that pilina with the land is everything." As part of its vision of "to grow for the future, we must learn from the past," Polipoli Farms is dedicated to agroforestry, essentially creating a food forest - a traditional growing style that mimics natural forests and integrates trees and multi-level crops that support one-another in a single ecosystem. They are primarily cultivating "eanoe plants" (plants originally brought to Hawai'i by our ancestors) such as kalo, 'ulu (breadfruit), mai'a (banana), and niu (coconuts). Polipoli Farms also serves as the Maui hub for Project 'Ulu whieh helps other farmers with growing 'ulu and is currently in discussion with members of the Lahaina community about replanting 'ulu there to restore the famous 'ulu groves of Lele (the old name for Lahaina). They are also members of Māla 'Ōiwi, a safe space and support network for Kānaka Maoli farmers that embraces Indigenous values and farming techniques. And Apana and Bayless are working to build a food processing center on their land so that they and other farms ean scale up their processing and increase community access to Indigenous foods and medicinal plants. On its website, Polipoli Farms currently sells their special māmaki and 'ulu tea blend and chewy dried mai'a, and they plan to launeh more online products soon. "It's not just about the farm," said Apana. "It's about the people. We invite people to farm. We want people to have that pilina to the aina, so they understand why the 'ike of our kūpuna is still so revelant. We want them to feel the wai (water) so they have a pilina to wai and understand why it's so important. We want to grow pilina." ■ For more information go to: www.polipolifarms.com/.

r . "0M ** hIfPI Lehio Apona works ot her form.