Through our COVID-19 Farmer Produce Purchase Assistance Program, Turtle Bay Resort purchased and distributed nearly 14,000 pounds of fresh produce – locally grown at Kuilima Farms – to North Shore families between April and July. Launched in April by Turtle Bay and Pono Pacific, the COVID-19 Farmer Produce Purchase Assistance Program supports the farmers of Kuilima Farms and the North Shore community during the coronavirus pandemic.
Volunteers handed out nearly 14,000 pounds of fruits and veggies worth of fresh food to community members during weekly Food Drop Fridays events at Shark’s Cove, including:
- 6,500 pounds of tomatoes
- 3,400 pounds of cucumbers
- 3,300 pounds of bananas
- 580 pounds of luau leaves
- 100 pounds of long beans
- 50 pounds of papaya
Melissa Ginella is a North Shore resident who frequently helped with the food distributions.
“We appreciate all of your support because we really wanted to help our community during these stressful times,” said Ginella, who is the co-owner of The Cove Collection and owner of Beach Love Jewelry. “The produce grown by Kuilima farmers and donated by Turtle Bay Resort and Pono Pacific helped us feed more than 10,000 people through our 14 food drives at McCully’s Corner.”
We’d like to extend a big mahalo to the Hawai‘i Foodbank, Hawai‘i Health and Harm Reduction Center (H3RC), Hanapohaku, and all of the volunteers. This effort would not have been possible without the many hands who contributed and passed out fresh food to the North Shore community during the past few months.
