MEDIA RELEASE

In a unanimous decision on the Senate floor, State Senators confirmed Scott Enright as the Chairperson of the Department of Agriculture (DOA).

Enright has served as the director of the Department of Agriculture since January 2014, and deputy director for the previous two years.

Enright serves as national chair of the National Association of State Directors of Agriculture and has extensive knowledge of bioenergy fuel stock and broad experience in land use planning and policy as it pertains to agriculture in Hawaii.

“We’re impressed with the fact that Mr. Enright enjoys support from every sector of agriculture, from large scale industries including biotech, to small farmers and the organic farming community. This ability to relate to and support all kinds of farmers is exactly what we need in Hawaii today,” said Sen. Russell Ruderman (District 2 – Puna, Ka‘u), Chair of the Senate Agriculture committee.

“It’s wonderful to be able to work with Gov. Ige as he moves to make Hawaii’s diversified agricultural economy and food sustainability a success,” said Enright.

The State Senate also confirmed Phyllis Shimabukuro-Geiser as the Deputy Chairperson of the DOA.

Shimabukuro-Geiser is a third generation descendant from a farming family on Maui. She has both Bachelor’s and Master’s of Science degrees in Agriculture and has 30 years of experience in farming.