01-31-2026, 02:47 PM
(This post was last modified: 08-20-2026, 01:54 AM by Punatang.
Edit Reason: Constant updates
)
This post (#1) will be continually updated to provide the latest resources for Punawebbers. There is no need to proceed past post #1 if you are just here for assistance. Everything of use to you that comes later in the thread, will always be added here. If you have reached the bold red line, you've gone too far but you can always find a quick link to bring you back to safety - and the food!
Your Punaweb neighbors are scouring the district, media, internet and every other source we can find to offer you help and hope. It can be hard out here in Puna and this thread is here to make things a little easier. One thing all Punawebbers agree on is that one way or another, everyone needs nourishment. Hopefully this thread helps you and your family enjoy greater health and resilience.
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https://bigislandnow.com/2026/08/19/snap...cane-lala/
SNAP recipients to be reimbursed from food loss caused by Hurricane Lala
By Big Island Now StaffAugust 19, 2026 · 10:00 AM HST
Current Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) recipients can receive replacement benefits after experiencing food loss during the severe weather and power outages associated with Hurricane Lala.
SNAP replacement benefits allow eligible households to be reimbursed for food purchased with SNAP benefits that was destroyed. The replacement amount will be based on the value of food lost, not to exceed the total monthly SNAP benefit issued to the household....
...The Department of Human Services is committed to making the replacement process as straightforward as possible and is accepting applications statewide.
To qualify, SNAP recipients must submit a signed, written statement reporting the food loss within 10 days of the incident. The statement must include:
Written statements may be submitted to any Department of Human Services Processing Center statewide. Once received, submissions will be reviewed and validated. Approved applicants will receive replacement benefits following the review process.
For more information, participants are encouraged to visit the Department of Human Services website or call the Statewide Public Assistance Information Line at 855-643-1643...
More at link...
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
The income limits for free and reduced school meals are being increased to 300% of poverty level - meaning more families qualify.
https://hawaiipublicschools.org/school-s...s-program/
The new limits also apply to after-school subsidies with the A+ program.
https://hawaiicommunityengagement.com/af...hool-plus/
To submit an application for Free and Reduced-Price Meal Benefits, please visit EZMealApp.
Effective for the school year 2026-27, the Department has expanded its free meal eligibility to families with household incomes at or below 300% of the federal poverty level (ALICE households) under Act 139 (Session Laws of Hawaiʻi 2025). The expansion builds on the first phase of the law, implemented during the 2025–26 school year, which eliminated meal charges for students who qualified for reduced-price meals under the National School Lunch Program. Eligible students will receive one free breakfast and one free lunch each school day.
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Find Food Now - The Food Basket (Hawaii Island Food Bank) locations ++ https://www.hawaiifoodbasket.org/find-food-now
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Hóōla Farms offers training classes and workshops that help Big Island veterans and community members grow food.
From personal experience I can vouch for the organization and their offerings. You may be familiar with the "Farm to Car" program.
In August they will have their: Seed to Plate workshop
"Seed to Plate covers the basics of growing food in Hawaiʻi. We’ll bring in community experts to cover how to get your garden started, keep it healthy, harvest it, and cook with your freshly grown ingredients — plus farm tours to learn directly from local growers and farmers."
The classes are fun and informative. They are typically free for veterans. If you are not a veteran but feel the cost of a class is out of reach, just call them and explain your situation. It is worth the effort.
https://hoolafarms.org/program/groundwork-to-grow/
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Use the SNAP retailer locator to find the retailers closest to you who accept SNAP/EBT
https://www.fns.usda.gov/snap/retailer-locator
Actual Locator Tool Shortcut >>>>> SNAP Locator Tool
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Punatics know how hard it can be to get groceries out here. The best deals for us are at Wal-mart but it's expensive to get there and back in a vehicle, assuming you even have access to one. Wal-mart runs can also be daunting to manage with the bus. One solution is The Wal-mart+ Assist Memership. If you have almost any type of government subsidy like SNAP, WIC, Medicaid (Quest) and more, for $6.47 per month you can get free delivery and more from Walmart. It's not just groceries - it's almost everything they offer. Without the subsidy it costs $12.95 per month. There is even a free 30 day trial. https://www.walmart.com/plus/assist
Amazon offers an almost identical membership for Prime if you qualify for almost any type of government subsidy. Try Prime Access for 30 days for $0 and then $6.99 per month after the trial period ends. Cancel at any time.
https://www.amazon.com/amazonprime?primeCampaignId=accessWlpPrimeRedir&ref_=amacspr
Check out their "Amazon Saver" grocery prices! It's not as hard to get food in Puna anymore!
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
"Simple and healthy local meals that don't break the bank" https://nutritioncenter.ctahr.hawaii.edu...OOK-V2.pdf
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
HEAL with Hawaii Island Healthy Eating - "promoting health and well being across Hawaii Island"
This is an amazing site with links to almost any kind of food resources imaginable, right here on BI. Find farmers markets, food baskets, SNAP assistance and more!
https://www.hiphi.org/hawaii/hawaii-isla...ving-heal/
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Hawaii Nutrition Center can be an amazing resource for Punawebbers. https://nutritioncenter.ctahr.hawaii.edu/
______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Hawaii Farm-to-Car is a great way to acquire the freshest produce and products while supporting Big Island farmers and creators.
They take SNAP/EBT and participate in DaBux program.
CLICK HERE TO SHOP!
https://shop.hawaiifarmtocar.org/Index
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
by ironyak - "Every year, Hawaiʻi Foodbank partners with the State of Hawaiʻi Office of Community Services and the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Food and Nutrition Service to organize the Senior Farmers’ Market Nutrition Program. Hawaiʻi’s SFMNP offers eligible seniors $50 worth of coupons (10 coupons valued at $5 each) to obtain eligible foods without charge from participating farmers, farmers’ markets and roadside stands that have been approved to accept SFMNP coupons. Through SFMNP, kūpuna are provided with nutritious foods as well as education to emphasize the relationship of proper nutrition to good health." https://hawaiifoodbank.org/get-help/sfmnp/
______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
By Olohena 1790 - buy 1 fishing pole and a RockStar drink from J Hara Store and drive to coast. duh duh duh
By LeilaniDude - You can also buy a box of frozen squid to use as bait, with that SNAP card.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
FOOD
Your Punaweb neighbors are scouring the district, media, internet and every other source we can find to offer you help and hope. It can be hard out here in Puna and this thread is here to make things a little easier. One thing all Punawebbers agree on is that one way or another, everyone needs nourishment. Hopefully this thread helps you and your family enjoy greater health and resilience.
***********************************************************************************************************************
https://bigislandnow.com/2026/08/19/snap...cane-lala/
SNAP recipients to be reimbursed from food loss caused by Hurricane Lala
By Big Island Now StaffAugust 19, 2026 · 10:00 AM HST
Current Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) recipients can receive replacement benefits after experiencing food loss during the severe weather and power outages associated with Hurricane Lala.
SNAP replacement benefits allow eligible households to be reimbursed for food purchased with SNAP benefits that was destroyed. The replacement amount will be based on the value of food lost, not to exceed the total monthly SNAP benefit issued to the household....
...The Department of Human Services is committed to making the replacement process as straightforward as possible and is accepting applications statewide.
To qualify, SNAP recipients must submit a signed, written statement reporting the food loss within 10 days of the incident. The statement must include:
- The name of the SNAP participant
- Date of food loss (please provide a specific date; not a range)
- Estimated value of food lost (please provide a specific dollar amount; not a range)
- A description of what occurred and when
- Contact information for the participant
Written statements may be submitted to any Department of Human Services Processing Center statewide. Once received, submissions will be reviewed and validated. Approved applicants will receive replacement benefits following the review process.
For more information, participants are encouraged to visit the Department of Human Services website or call the Statewide Public Assistance Information Line at 855-643-1643...
More at link...
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
The income limits for free and reduced school meals are being increased to 300% of poverty level - meaning more families qualify.
https://hawaiipublicschools.org/school-s...s-program/
The new limits also apply to after-school subsidies with the A+ program.
https://hawaiicommunityengagement.com/af...hool-plus/
To submit an application for Free and Reduced-Price Meal Benefits, please visit EZMealApp.
Effective for the school year 2026-27, the Department has expanded its free meal eligibility to families with household incomes at or below 300% of the federal poverty level (ALICE households) under Act 139 (Session Laws of Hawaiʻi 2025). The expansion builds on the first phase of the law, implemented during the 2025–26 school year, which eliminated meal charges for students who qualified for reduced-price meals under the National School Lunch Program. Eligible students will receive one free breakfast and one free lunch each school day.
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Find Food Now - The Food Basket (Hawaii Island Food Bank) locations ++ https://www.hawaiifoodbasket.org/find-food-now
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Hóōla Farms offers training classes and workshops that help Big Island veterans and community members grow food.
From personal experience I can vouch for the organization and their offerings. You may be familiar with the "Farm to Car" program.
In August they will have their: Seed to Plate workshop
"Seed to Plate covers the basics of growing food in Hawaiʻi. We’ll bring in community experts to cover how to get your garden started, keep it healthy, harvest it, and cook with your freshly grown ingredients — plus farm tours to learn directly from local growers and farmers."
The classes are fun and informative. They are typically free for veterans. If you are not a veteran but feel the cost of a class is out of reach, just call them and explain your situation. It is worth the effort.
https://hoolafarms.org/program/groundwork-to-grow/
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Use the SNAP retailer locator to find the retailers closest to you who accept SNAP/EBT
https://www.fns.usda.gov/snap/retailer-locator
Actual Locator Tool Shortcut >>>>> SNAP Locator Tool
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Punatics know how hard it can be to get groceries out here. The best deals for us are at Wal-mart but it's expensive to get there and back in a vehicle, assuming you even have access to one. Wal-mart runs can also be daunting to manage with the bus. One solution is The Wal-mart+ Assist Memership. If you have almost any type of government subsidy like SNAP, WIC, Medicaid (Quest) and more, for $6.47 per month you can get free delivery and more from Walmart. It's not just groceries - it's almost everything they offer. Without the subsidy it costs $12.95 per month. There is even a free 30 day trial. https://www.walmart.com/plus/assist
Amazon offers an almost identical membership for Prime if you qualify for almost any type of government subsidy. Try Prime Access for 30 days for $0 and then $6.99 per month after the trial period ends. Cancel at any time.
https://www.amazon.com/amazonprime?primeCampaignId=accessWlpPrimeRedir&ref_=amacspr
Check out their "Amazon Saver" grocery prices! It's not as hard to get food in Puna anymore!
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
"Simple and healthy local meals that don't break the bank" https://nutritioncenter.ctahr.hawaii.edu...OOK-V2.pdf
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
HEAL with Hawaii Island Healthy Eating - "promoting health and well being across Hawaii Island"
This is an amazing site with links to almost any kind of food resources imaginable, right here on BI. Find farmers markets, food baskets, SNAP assistance and more!
https://www.hiphi.org/hawaii/hawaii-isla...ving-heal/
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Hawaii Nutrition Center can be an amazing resource for Punawebbers. https://nutritioncenter.ctahr.hawaii.edu/
______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Hawaii Farm-to-Car is a great way to acquire the freshest produce and products while supporting Big Island farmers and creators.
They take SNAP/EBT and participate in DaBux program.
- Create your customer account and shop online. Our market shop is open for purchases from 10 AM Friday until 6 PM Monday.Wednesday: Distribution Day! Pick up your order from one of three distribution locations from
- Hilo 3-6 PM: 355 Kino'ole Street
- Kea‘au 3-6 PM: 16-492 Old Volcano Rd
- Pepeʻekeo 3-5 PM 28-1099 Old Mamalahoa Hwy
- Hilo 3-6 PM: 355 Kino'ole Street
CLICK HERE TO SHOP!
https://shop.hawaiifarmtocar.org/Index
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
by ironyak - "Every year, Hawaiʻi Foodbank partners with the State of Hawaiʻi Office of Community Services and the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Food and Nutrition Service to organize the Senior Farmers’ Market Nutrition Program. Hawaiʻi’s SFMNP offers eligible seniors $50 worth of coupons (10 coupons valued at $5 each) to obtain eligible foods without charge from participating farmers, farmers’ markets and roadside stands that have been approved to accept SFMNP coupons. Through SFMNP, kūpuna are provided with nutritious foods as well as education to emphasize the relationship of proper nutrition to good health." https://hawaiifoodbank.org/get-help/sfmnp/
______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
By Olohena 1790 - buy 1 fishing pole and a RockStar drink from J Hara Store and drive to coast. duh duh duh
By LeilaniDude - You can also buy a box of frozen squid to use as bait, with that SNAP card.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
FOOD
"If we are too precise we will be called out because we cannot back it with data."- A.F.