Aloun Farms, Inc.

HISTORY OF ALOUN FARMS Aloun Sou and his family of six immigrated to Hawaii from Laos via a refugee camp on the Thailand-Laos border. The family settled in Waianae in 1977 and began to farm on 5 acres of leased land in the Lualualei Valley. For several years, farm productivity increased as the Sou family introduced and cultivated various varieties of Asian vegetables, green onions, and herbs. Since Aloun and his wife, Somphone, had limited English speaking skills, their four children were encouraged to learn English and apply their skills to the farm's production, marketing, and sales. In 1983, the family began its distribution and started to sell directly to Hawaii's major supermarkets. Because 80% of the fruits and vegetables consumed in Hawaii are imported, the Sou family foresaw an increased demand for locally-grown produce. In 1994, the Sou Family committed to a business plan targeting the reduction of produce imported into the State of Hawaii. The following year, Oahu Sugar Company announced its closure, making 6,000 acres of farmland available in central Oahu. Aloun Farms was incorporated in late 1995, and its first land lease of 880 acres of former sugar cane fields in Ewa and Kunia was finalized. The farm quickly grew from an 18-acre-family farm to a commercial operation of 1,200 acres by the summer of 1996. Currently, Aloun Farms provides full-time employment to 180 people and has expanded production to approximately 3,000 acres (Ewa Plains, Kunia, Waipio, and Helemano). The company aims to provide Hawaii consumers with "the highest quality of fresh island-grown produce." Together with the communities of Ewa and Central Oahu, Aloun Farms strongly supports community outreach through educational tours and collaboration with the Future Farmers of America program. School-to-work programs, educational farm visits, and practical training for FFA high school students have been implemented to support Hawaii's agriculture industry. Aloun Farms mission is to provide the people of Hawaii with the highest quality of fresh, locally-grown produce at a price that is not only competitive but comparable to mainland farmers. Our aim is to reduce Hawaii's dependency on imported produce through increased production, enabling us to distribute to wholesalers throughout the state. Although we are a commercial operation, Aloun Farms strives to adopt sustainable techniques. Aloun Farms believes that techniques such as diversification, crop rotation, integrated pest management, farm labor housing development, and community education are vital to the success of our company. Diversified cultivation practices will enable Aloun Farms to produce fresh produce, and help with seed production which is vital to agriculture research and development, cultivation of corn feed(silage) for the island's dairy and cattle industry, educational opportunities that tie farm operations with community outreach, and the ability to produce (non-traditional i.e. sugar) exportable commodities for markets outside of Hawaii.