KÅNE‘OHE — This February public school cafeterias statewide were offered the opportunity to serve banana (mai’a) sheet pancakes for breakfast using locally grown apple bananas. Hawaiʻi apple bananas are the main variety grown by local producers. An estimated 2,135 pounds of local apple bananas were distributed to serve 92 participating schools. 

The local banana pancakes sparked a new favorite breakfast menu item for some of the students at Kāneʻohe Elementary.

“这顿早餐真的很好吃，是我吃过的最好的早餐之一，”四年级学生 Beau Makua 说。“吃完这顿之后，我可能还会再来吃一顿。”

“I felt like it was the best breakfast that we’ve ever had over here,” fifth grader Logan Park said. “Probably because of the taste of the pancake and the type of banana it was. I feel like local bananas are the best out of all bananas.”

该部门的“从农场到学校”计划旨在提高夏威夷的食品可持续性，并与 第175号法案该项目致力于改善学生的健康，同时支持当地农民。 

“I love that it’s local and we’re using what came from our land,” Kāneʻohe Elementary parent Marian Clark said. “It’s better, it tastes better, and it’s just all around coming from where we live. It’s our produce, not shipped from other countries or other places.” 

夏威夷公立学校是该州最大的食品机构消费者，每天为 100,000 多名学生提供餐食。该部门将继续与全州的当地供应商密切合作，以期在未来定期在所有学校推广新鲜的当地农产品。