Hawaii Agribusiness Development Corporation Reorganizes Board Leadership, Mobilizes Major Statewide Infrastructure Investments

Agribusiness Development Corporation
For Immediate Release: August 10, 2026

HONOLULU—Advancing its mission to expand local food production and strengthen Hawaii’s agricultural future, the Hawaii Agribusiness Development Corporation (ADC) Board of Directors has elected its officers for a one-year term beginning this month.

Board member Jayson Watts (Maui County representative) was reelected as board chair, with Jason Okuhama (at-large member) as vice chair. In line with the board’s commitment to modernizing its governance structure, members also created and filled two new executive officer positions: Ciara W.K. Kahahane (ex officio DLNR representative and deputy director of the Commission on Water Resource Management) as board secretary and Jesse Cooke (City and County of Honolulu representative) as board treasurer.

Watts has been a leading advocate for empowering board members equally and modernizing the agency’s governance framework. The creation of secretary and treasurer roles addresses longstanding administrative and fiscal oversight gaps. These positions strengthen internal management, safeguard public funds and expand opportunities for broader board participation in essential public trust protections, recordkeeping and financial strategy.

The board also welcomed newly appointed at-large member Joshua Uyehara, president of the Kekaha Agriculture Association. He succeeds outgoing member Glenn Hong, former president of Young Brothers.

“I am honored to serve another year as chair of the ADC Board of Directors,” Watts said. “In the past year, we have made historic strides, from securing new farming leases and forging vital industry partnerships to finalizing the acquisition of the Wahiawa Irrigation System and advancing the Hawaii Department of Education regional kitchen in Whitmore Village. These milestones lay the groundwork for long-term food security, but our vision goes further. By modernizing our governance, empowering our board and expanding land and water system acquisitions and processing infrastructure across Kauai, Oahu and Hawaii Island, ADC is actively building a resilient, self-sustaining agricultural ecosystem that keeps local farming viable, profitable and thriving for generations to come.”

Executive Leadership Profiles

• Board Chair Jayson Watts – Representing Maui County, Watts serves as director of environmental health at Mahi Pono. Reappointed by Governor Josh Green to a term confirmed through June 30, 2029, Watts brings an extensive background in public policy and agricultural administration from senior governmental and agricultural roles. His leadership experience includes serving as president of the Maui County Farm Bureau and chair of the Hawaii Food Industry Association.
• Board Vice Chair Jason Okuhama – An at-large member through June 30, 2027, Okuhama is managing partner of Commercial and Business Lending. With 43 years of commercial lending experience, he specializes in USDA Farm Service Agency, USDA Rural Development and Small Business Administration loan programs across Hawaii and the Pacific.
• Board Secretary Ciara W.K. Kahahane – Serving as ex officio representative for the DLNR chairperson, Kahahane is deputy director for CWRM. A graduate of the William S. Richardson School of Law, she previously served in the Attorney General’s Complex Litigation Division.
• Board Treasurer Jesse Cooke – Representing the City and County of Honolulu (term through June 30, 2028), Cooke is a CFA® charterholder with degrees from Emory University and Georgia State University. As treasurer, he will guide fiscal strategy, capital deployment and direct audit compliance controls, drawing on his institutional finance background and recent leadership as chair of ADC’s Permitted Interaction Group on institutional food procurement.
• At-Large Board Member Joshua Uyehara – A fourth-generation West Kauai resident, Uyehara brings extensive operational expertise in land stewardship, water resource management and commercial farming. Since 2016, he has served as president of the Kekaha Agriculture Association Board of Directors, following senior operational leadership roles with Hartung Brothers Inc. and Syngenta.

Major Strategic Projects and Capital Investments
With strong legislative support, ADC is deploying aggressive public trust protections in capital investments across land acquisition, water security, processing infrastructure and regional hubs statewide.

1. Water Security and Infrastructure Preparedness
   • Wahiawa Irrigation System acquisition (Oahu): ADC and DLNR finalized an agreement to transfer ownership of the Wahiawa Irrigation System – including the dam, spillway and Lake Wilson – into public trust. This move places the state’s largest inland body of water, holding approximately 3 billion gallons, under state control and ensures reliable agricultural water delivery for farmers in Central and North Oahu.
   • West Kauai water systems safety and preparedness: $10.88 million was allocated under Green Fee funding for critical water safety improvements, infrastructure repairs and emergency readiness.
   • Waiahole and reclaimed water improvements (Oahu): $2.5 million for Waiahole Water System improvements and $4 million for wastewater reclaimed water irrigation infrastructure in fiscal year 2026.
   • Oahu water management: $750,000 for system safety, supported by $171,200 to establish a dedicated Oahu Water Systems Manager position.
2. Regional Agricultural Hubs and Statewide Land Acquisitions
   • Hawaii Island regional initiatives ($10 million): Targeted capital investments will support the establishment of regional farming hubs, including $4.5 million for Kona, $3 million for North Hawaii and $2.5 million for South Hawaii.
   • Grove Farm land purchase (Kauai): The state is moving forward with a $39 million acquisition of 1,000 acres of prime agricultural land to protect tenant farmers and preserve productive acreage.
   • Strategic land purchases: $4.5 million in fiscal year 2027 (and $500,000 in fiscal year 2026) for commercial land on Oahu, $3 million for landlocked Oahu parcels and $1.3 million for key lands in Waimea, Kauai.
3. Processing, Livestock and Postharvest Facilities
   • State postharvest and innovation infrastructure (Oahu): $22.07 million for State Postharvest Facility construction (fiscal year 2026), $1 million for an animal processing and storage facility (fiscal year 2026) and $13.07 million for the Food and Product Innovation Network and processing manufacturing facility.
   • Slaughterhouse and processing capacity: $4 million for an Oahu small animal slaughterhouse (fiscal year 2026), $6.925 million total across fiscal year 2026–2027 for food processing plants, $1.2 million for a forage drying facility and $250,000 for statewide cattle slaughterhouse support.

Appointments for ADC committee chairs will be announced at the August board meeting. For more information about ADC, visit: https://dbedt.hawaii.gov/adc.

About the Agribusiness Development Corporation
The Agribusiness Development Corporation (ADC) is a state agency created in 1994 by the Hawaii State Legislature and is administratively attached to the Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism (DBEDT). ADC’s mission is to conserve and convert arable lands and associated infrastructure formerly used for single-crop plantations into productive, diversified agricultural uses to ensure long-term food security and economic viability for Hawaii.

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MEDIA CONTACT:
Laci Goshi
Communications Officer
Department of Business, Economic Development & Tourism, State of Hawaii
(808) 518-5480

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