As King Charles III and world leaders arrive in Samoa for the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) this week, they will be feasting on produce grown by the Polynesian country’s small-scale family farmers.
But harvesting large quantities of high-quality fruit and vegetables comes at a cost.
In the face of increasingly volatile climate events like cyclones, drought, and rising sea levels, farmers are struggling.
Commonly grown produce in Samoa include leafy greens, taro, bananas and breadfruit. (ABC News: Adel Fruean)
Many hope CHOGM will raise awareness about the impact of climate change on food security in the Pacific.
One of the meeting’s key themes for 2024 is “a resilient environment to combat climate change”, and Charles has long been known for supporting environmental causes.
Dora Tanupeau Loane is looking forward to supplying Chinese cabbage, tomatoes, cucumbers, corn and dragon fruit for CHOGM attendees.
“We do feel a sense of pride and happiness that there’ll be many people arriving that we’ll be able to serve,” said the farmer from Aleisa, just outside of the capital Apia.
“I guess we’ll have to see what the king will eat.”
Delivering produce daily to local supermarkets and markets, farming runs in Ms Tanupeau Loane’s blood.
Samoa has recently suffered a number of significant climate extremes including a drought which impacted crops grown for the export and domestic markets. (ABC News: Adel Fruean)
“My parents were farmers and then my husband became a farmer until he passed away, and then I’ve just continued that legacy up till now,” she said.
Feast fit for a king
In the lead-up to CHOGM, climate change has proved to be the key threat to production.
King Charles III has a long history of supporting environmental causes. (Reuters: Chris Jackson)
Samoa Farmers Association treasurer Leaupepe Lasa Aiono said there had been rain between January and June, “which is not something we are used to because our wet season runs from October to March”.
“That’s a major impact of climate change to our crops, the constant change of weather,” she said.
The association works across the agriculture sector with a particular focus on lifting up Samoan smallholders who farm vegetables, fruit trees, taro, bananas, breadfruit, cocoa, livestock and honey.
Samoa Farmers Association treasurer Leaupepe Lasa Aiono said that she hopes the hotels will not import their vegetables for CHOGM, instead supporting local farmers. (ABC News: Adel Fruean)
Previously the association helped supply crops for the Pacific Games, but Ms Aiono says CHOGM has been different.
“This meeting will bring many from other countries and not all people eat Samoan crops like taro,” she said.
“One thing we will supply is breadfruit because I know many people like and eat breadfruit.”
Breadfruit, a member of the jackfruit family, is named for tasting like freshly baked bread and in Samoa is typically eaten cooked with butter.
Breadfruit is a staple in Samoa. (ABC Rural: Lucy Cooper)
Ms Aiono said green salads and Samoa’s signature misiluki bananas were also on the menu.
“We’re thankful for this meeting,” she said, explaining it was an opportunity to showcase the quality of Samoa’s crops and the season’s harvest.
Opportunity for awareness
From dead crops to changes in the weather and thieves, there are no shortage of issues facing Samoa’s food industry.
Kyle Stice is executive director of Pacific Farmer Organisations, which oversees groups like the Samoa Farmers Association.
CHOGM represented a historic opportunity to raise awareness about the impact of climate change on agriculture, he said.
Kyle Stice said there is an enormous funding gap with less than 0.04 percent of climate finance allocated to smallholder farmers globally. (ABC News: Isoa Tokalautawa)
“We have these three big threats that are all interrelated, we have food security, which is a major threat, we also have non-communicable diseases, and then we have climate change,” Mr Stice said.
“We believe that the real opportunity kind of lies in promoting farmers to produce more local or traditional staple crops.
“As the delegates are able to access all of this local food, I think an important message is also to understand the threats that farmers face.”
Ms Tanupeau Loane said: “Nowadays it’s particularly challenging to find people willing to work, so we’re looking to introduce machinery to help ease the workload.”
Drought in recent years has battered Samoa’s taro growers — both in terms of its export industry and domestic market.
“The number of category four and category five cyclones that have struck the region in the last 10 years, it’s unprecedented,” Mr Stice said.
“We also see extreme drought and extreme rainfall events, so all of these are really undermining the viability of our farming systems.”
A way of life in ‘a country of hosts’
More than just an income, for many Samoans farming is a way of life — a life which they hope climate change will not limit.
Preparing her crops for the world stage has given Ms Tanupeau Loane, the Aleisa farmer, a chance to reflect on why she has chosen this life.
“It’s not just the bread and butter for my own family … it’s your life and it’s your passion,” she said.
The Samoa Farmers Association has worked closely with the CHOGM organising committee, Ministry of Agriculture, and restaurants to ensure all visitors have access to local foods. (ABC News: Adel Fruean)
The farmers association’s Ms Aiono said “Samoa is known as a country of hosts”.
“In farming, only those with big hearts are able to do this kind of work,” she said.
