Hawaii Food & Wine Festival^® Commits to Sourcing All Limes & Lemons From Mahi Pono

HONOLULU, HI (June 30, 2025)—As part of its ongoing commitment to support Hawaii’s local agriculture and promote sustainability across the food and beverage industry, the Hawaii Food & Wine Festival^® (HFWF)—a program of the nonprofit Hawaii Ag & Culinary Alliance (HACA)—announces that 100% of the limes and lemons featured in the Fifteenth Annual festival events this fall will be sourced exclusively from Maui-based farming company, Mahi Pono. This milestone strengthens a long-standing partnership that began in 2019 and sets a new benchmark for local sourcing at large-scale culinary events in Hawaii.

Since 2019, HFWF has worked with Mahi Pono to increase the visibility and usage of locally grown ingredients across its multi-island festival platform. In 2021, the collaboration expanded through HFWF’s Chefs’ Corner initiative, where local chefs cultivated quarter-acre plots on Mahi Pono farmland—bringing consistent seasonal plants from the field to their kitchens. By exclusively sourcing its limes and lemons from Mahi Pono this year, HFWF is deepening its commitment to local agriculture while setting a powerful example for the greater hospitality, restaurant, and beverage industries to prioritize Hawaii-grown ingredients. Last year alone, the Festival used approximately 1,900 pounds of limes and lemons across its events—a volume that underscores the significant impact of choosing local citrus on Hawaii’s food system. Festival guests will taste the impact of this decision at HFWF events across three weekends on the Island of Hawaii, Maui, and Oahu.—appearing in handcrafted cocktails, seafood preparations, sauces and desserts that highlight the bright, bold flavor of Mahi Pono’s Maui limes and lemons.

“Supporting our local farmers has always been at the core of our mission,” said Denise Yamaguchi, Chief Executive Officer of the Hawaii Food & Wine Festival. “By working closely with Mahi Pono to source 100% of our limes and lemons from Maui, we’re not only reducing our environmental footprint, we’re creating a ripple effect that we hope will inspire chefs, mixologists, and restaurant operators across the state to do the same.”

Mahi Pono’s citrus operation represents one of the largest commercial plantings of limes and lemons in Hawaii. Since acquiring 41,000 acres of former sugar cane land in Central Maui in 2018, Mahi Pono has planted 2.8 million trees and developed over 13,000 acres of diversified crops, including the company’s signature Maui limes and lemons. With a 117,000-square-foot packing facility and distribution network servicing both Maui and Oahu, the company has built the capacity to supply the entire state’s demand for locally grown limes and lemons. Importantly, Mahi Pono is committed to price parity with mainland limes and lemons, ensuring chefs, mixologists, and buyers can choose local citrus without trade-offs in quality or cost.

Maui limes are also making their way into value-added products incubating in Hawaii Ag & Culinary Alliance’s Cottage Industry to Commercial Enterprise cohorts. Local cocktail mixer company Pau Hana Co. sources Mahi Pono limes for its bottled craft beverage mixers, citing the superior juice yield and freshness of the fruit as a key reason. The company’s founders, Alyssa and Tyler Yafuso say using Maui limes not only enhances product quality, but also strengthens their mission to support Hawaii’s agriculture through value-added goods.

“This partnership with Hawaii Food & Wine Festival proves that local sourcing can work at scale—without compromising on quality, consistency or cost,” said Shan Tsutsui, Chief Operating Officer at Mahi Pono. “We’ve built the infrastructure to supply Maui limes across the state, and we encourage chefs, bars, restaurants and retailers to ask their distributors for them. When more businesses choose local, we all help strengthen Hawaii’s agricultural future.”

Festival chefs and mixologists have praised the exceptional flavor and freshness of Mahi Pono’s Maui limes and lemons, calling them a standout ingredient. This full Festival-wide commitment to sourcing these citrus fruits locally reflects HFWF’s role as a catalyst for change—demonstrating what’s possible when Hawaii’s culinary and hospitality industry puts local agriculture first. In doing so, HFWF invites restaurants, bars, resorts, and foodservice operators statewide to follow suit and take the first step by asking their distributors for Maui limes and lemons.

Tickets are on sale now for the Fifteenth Annual Hawaii Food & Wine Festival, which will take place October 17 through November 2, 2025, across the Island of Hawaii, Maui, and Oahu. For the full schedule of events, participating talent and to purchase tickets, visit hawaiifoodandwinefestival.com. Stay connected—follow HFWF on Instagram @HIFoodWineFest using #HFWF25 and #SourceLocal, and on Facebook at @HawaiiFoodandWineFestival. Since 2011, HFWF has raised over $5 million to support local community and aina-based organizations committed to agricultural and culinary education, sustainability and cultural initiatives. Photo and video opportunities of Mahi Pono’s citrus operation, chef sourcing, and behind-the-scenes prep are available upon request.