PHOTO COURTESY TAMURA SUPER MARKET
The Frontlines of Food Retailers Keep Hawaii Fed During the Crisis BY ALEXIS CHAPMAN
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t HFIA we often say, “our members take great pride in feeding our state.” The job of keeping our state fed has never been more challenging, or more important. As the world has come to appreciate how essential food workers and the food industry are, food retailers have stood on the front lines. Our member retailers have had to quickly adapt to new consumer demands, new government regulations
and safety recommendations, all of which have changed multiple times in a matter of weeks. They’ve found and created imaginative solutions, and worked to create the best ways to keep Hawaii fed while keeping their employees, customers, and communities safe. As our State’s unemployment rates have climbed to the highest in the nation, with more than 1 in 3 Hawaii residents out of work, our food industry has also continued to provide jobs and proven what an
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essential economic driver we are in Hawaii.
Retailers Become Safety Leaders In the early stages of the pandemic, information on the best ways to stop the spread seemed to be coming from all sides at once, with little agreement. New recommendations and regulations were coming from Federal sources, the State, and the Counties, often with just a few hours warning. Retail-
