Who We Are

Renewable Saltwater Aquaponic Technology

Founded by Dr. Wenhao Sun and partners in 2006, Olakai Hawaii is a pioneer in sustainable saltwater polyculture. We harness symbiotic relationships and renewable resources to cultivate terrestrial crops in seawater. We’ve repurposed underutilized shrimp farms, fishponds, and effluent ditches to cultivate crops without using arable land or fresh water.

Olakai Hawaii is committed to advancing renewable aquaculture technology, using sea asparagus as its vehicle to producing clean, delicious ocean-based products in a bio-friendly and sustainable way.

We are proud to produce and distribute premium crops grown in an anti-algae salt-water aquaponic system. We now grow seaweed and sea asparagus for local, regional, and international sale.

Our company is also proud to be a recognized member of the Hawaii Seal of Quality program.

Why Marine Agriculture?

Facing Agricultural Crises

  • Limited arable land (43% of the earth’s total land is arid or semiarid)
  • 25 million hectares of agricultural land are lost every year to soil salinity
  • Shortage of fresh water due to climate change, pollution, overuse, and increased demand

A Solution for the Crisis

  • Marine Agriculture allows for cultivation in areas with limited land and freshwater
  • Marine Agriculture can free up much-needed land and fresh water for other uses

Our Techniques

  • Floating Plant Cultivation Platforms (FPCPs)

    • Allows land plants to be cultivated on flexible floating platforms in salt water ponds, coastal lagoons, and (eventually) open ocean
    • Use indigenous land plants that die when “escape” into salt water
    • Plants are isolated from surrounding land
    • Plants will be harvested when mature using methods developed by MAF

  • Anti-Alage Saltwater Aquaculture Systems and Methods (U.S. Patent 9,901,046)

    • Use of salt tolerant land plants (Sea asparagus, akulikuli) to suppress the growth of microalgae, and clean saltwater
    • Substantial growth of seaweeds (limu, ogo) from bottom of the sea asparagus ponds to provide mess of oxygen for plant roots and fish
    • Cultivation of fish in the body of the saltwater to supply foods for seaweeds and Sea asparagus
    • Commercial viable through symbiotic ecosystem and poly-culture productions

  • Uses of Marine Agriculture

    • Productions of sea plants, animals, and fungi for food, medicinals, biomaterials, biofuel
    • Marine Environmental protection (Saltwater phytoremediation)
    • Ocean-scaping and Ocean conservation

  • Unique Features

    • Lower cost (no aeration, no circulation, no pesticides, no GMO, no freshwater, no filtration)
    • Higher productivity due to three yields in one ponds

What is Sea Asparagus?

Sea asparagus (Salicornia bigelovii), also known as sea beans or samphire, is a salt-loving plant that thrives in saline conditions. Despite the name, it is not a relative of traditional asparagus.

Renowned for its distinct crunch and salty flavor, it frequently features in salads, as a garnish, and an array of other dishes. It is also acclaimed for its nutritional content, including a range of vitamins and minerals, and a rich bioactive phytochemical profile.

Ours is grown in unique anti-algae saline aquaculture systems, where symbiotic relationships with fish and seaweed result in natural, organic, and delicious produce. Our location in Hawaii provides the perfect year-round growing conditions (and beautiful views!) for your next favorite ingredient.

Nutritional Powerhouse

The Health Benefits of Sea Asparagus

Sea asparagus is packed with beneficial plant compounds and naturally contains vitamins A, C, B2, and B15, plus amino acids and minerals like iron, calcium, and magnesium. Many customers love it as part of a balanced, wellness-focused diet.

Some of the important nutritional benefits unique in sea asparagus are highlighted below:

  • Excellent source of B9 (folate), which is often lacking in meat-heavy diets. Promotes healthy brain development and red cell growth.

  • Contains the richest concentration (5% per dry weight) of a betaine called trimethylglycine (TMG), good for reducing hypertension and homocysteine. In comparison, the next richest sources of betaine are quinoa (0.63%), spinach (0.55%) and beets (0.13%).

  • Good source of sodium and chloride minerals in separate forms, making it a good “salt-free” alternative for people looking to avoid NaCl in table salt.

Oral TMG is FDA-approved for treating high levels of homocysteine, which if not properly “methanized”, may lead to cardiovascular diseases, stroke, migraines, hearing loss, and hypertension, a condition that affects a third of the population. In daily life, diets heavy in red meat and dairy, coffee, alcohol consumption, smoking, obesity and advancing age all can contribute to increasing levels of homocysteine.

Sea Asparagus:

A Safe & Healthy Alternative for Salt Sensitivity

Recent research also concludes that that sea asparagus is good for salt-intolerant consumers. The vegetable tastes salty and contains the necessary minerals sodium and chloride separately, but not the NaCl form in table salt, the compound that causes allergic reactions in certain people, high-blood pressure, migraines, etc. This is because sea asparagus, which grows in salt-water, is able to naturally process sodium and chloride separately. These benefits make Olakai sea asparagus a likely candidate to become the next scion of nutritious and delicious superfood like acai, chia, and sprulina.