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The Maui News
Project Mahi'ai, an online marketplace for fresh products and produce provided by local farmers, has officially launched this weekend.
With an initial enrollment of eight cultivators, the Amazon-style distribution system was created to connect Maui farmers and ranchers who want to provide fresh produce, meats, eggs and dairy products to the community.
Both farmers and consumers can sign up at projectmahiai.net.
Project manager and Keokea farmer Theresa Hi'ilei Martinson said that the Office of Hawaiian Affairs funded the program to launch the virtual platform where mostly Native Hawaiian cultivators are able to sell and arrange delivery for residents and visitors to buy locally grown goods.
Martinson, an alumni of Kamehameha Schools and University of Hawaii at Manoa, had previously explained the meaning behind Mahi'ai, which is the Hawaiian word for "farmer" and an acronym for 'aina to ingestion."
According to the website, the goal of this project "is to identify and consolidate Native Hawaiian farmers on Maui via a Native Hawaiian farming community online platform that facilitates marketing, ordering and distribution for their products."
For more information or to apply, visit projectmahiai.net.