Hawai‘i’s fertile lands grow more than just breathtaking scenery—they cultivate stories, culture, and flavors found nowhere else in the world. Among the state’s most inspiring innovators are companies that don’t just use local ingredients—they grow them on their own farms and craft them into high-quality packaged products, creating a true seed-to-shelf experience.
As part of a series with Ulupono Initiative, Mana Up is celebrating the future of Hawai‘i agriculture through the creation of value-added products—rooted in culture, driven by purpose, and bursting with island-grown taste.
That includes the “farm to package” movement, embodied by brands like Mānoa Chocolate, Kahuku Farms, and Island Harvest, which prove that when the source is authentically local, both sustainability and flavor thrive.
Mānoa Chocolate: Crafting Cacao from the Ground Up
Mānoa Chocolate, located in Kailua on O‘ahu, has redefined what Hawaiian chocolate can be. By growing their own cacao in Hawai’i they’ve created a rare, fully local bean-to-bar operation.
Their single origin chocolate bars, such as the ones made with Mililani or Waimānalo cacao, reflect the microclimates of each farm site, offering unique tasting notes like cherry, passionfruit, or raspberry.
Mānoa’s commitment to using only a few ingredients: cacao, organic cane sugar, and cocoa butter means every bar is a direct expression of the land it comes from.
Even the packaging is thoughtful, using compostable, plant-based materials to align with the company’s focus on sustainability.
The result is not just chocolate, but it’s a deeply rooted Hawaiian agricultural product that tells a story with every bite.
"For us, connecting the dots from farm to packaging starts right at home—on our fourth-generation family farm."
Courtesy of Big Island Coffee Roasters
Courtesy of Mānoa Chocolate
Kahuku Farms: Nourishing Community from Seed to Shelf
Further up the North Shore, Kahuku Farms offers a vibrant look at what it means to eat where you grow. Located on ancestral farmland, the family run operation is both a working farm and a destination.
Visitors can stroll or take wagon tours through the fields where eggplants, papayas, bananas, and even rare Hawaiian grown acai berries thrive.
What sets Kahuku Farms apart is how seamlessly they integrate these crops into their packaged products.
Their lilikoi butter, mac nut crumble, and caramel aren’t just inspired by their land, they’re directly made from it. Even their on site café cooks with produce harvested just steps away, giving guests an immediate and intimate farm-to-table experience.
Kahuku Farms doesn’t just grow food, they grow relationships with the community through transparency, education, and aloha.
"For us, connecting the dots from farm to packaging starts right at home—on our fourth-generation family farm,” says Kylie Matsuda-Lum, co-founder of Kahuku Farms. “We grow many of the ingredients featured in our products, and through our packaging and branding, we aim to share the story of our land, heritage, and the care that goes into every harvest."
Island Harvest: Growing Organic Macadamias with Purpose
Over on Big Island, Island Harvest is proving that even a macadamia nut can be an agent of sustainability and pride.
This organic macadamia farm nurtures its groves without synthetic pesticides, cultivating macadamias that are as clean as they are delicious. Island Harvest not only grows the macadamias, they handle the entire journey, from harvest to packaging.
Their products, whether dry roasted with a touch of sea salt or enrobed in rich chocolate, are simple, healthy, and unmistakably Hawaiian.
The farm’s commitment to environmental stewardship, regenerative agriculture, and local job creation makes every package of Island Harvest macadamias a small but powerful example of how farming can uplift an entire ecosystem.
Andrew Trump, Vice President of Island Harvest shares, “It’s important to us that the product that we deliver to customers is authentic and ties them back to the farming roots of our community. We’re proud that every macadamia you get from Island Harvest is grown on only our farm here in Kohala”
Why Farm-to-Package Matters
These three companies reflect a deeper truth: when businesses control the full cycle from farm to product, the result is food with greater integrity, flavor, and cultural significance.
Mānoa Chocolate lets you taste the terroir of O‘ahu’s cacao orchards. Kahuku Farms offers a multi-sensory experience rooted in family and land. Island Harvest turns a staple snack into a symbol of Hawaiian sustainability.
Together, they offer more than products, but they offer stories worth sharing and flavors worth savoring. In every jar, bar, or bag, you can taste where it came from.
