Taro for poi is cultivated by both the dryland and wetland methods. Dasheen or araimo, Japanese taro, also is used as a table taro. The Samoan Niue is primarily used as a table taro. Like other farming, taro cultivation is demanding and the financial return can be low at times.
Farmers work bent over in knee deep water and mud, from sun up to sun down.
Areas suitable for taro cultivation are often far from conveniences such as decent roads, schools, hospitals, and shopping. Yet the number of people interested in raising taro is slowly rising. In 1990, the Big Island had 86 commercial taro farms. In 1994 there were 105. A lot of Hawaiian culture is based on taro cultivation, for example, you cannot fight when the bowl of poi is open.