(RICHMOND, Calif.) — M/V Moku Pahu has carried the final cargo of pure cane sugar from Hawaii, ending 145 years of the commodity trade with the islands, the San Francisco Chronicle reported. Sugar production used to be one of the economic mainstays of the islands, but it has been fading for years. The Hawaiian Commercial and Sugar Co., which ran the last mill, lost $30 million in its last full year of production. “We all knew it was coming,” said Capt. Christian Johnsen, who was in command for the final voyage Thursday. “But it’s certainly very sad. I’d say it’s like the death of a grandparent. We knew it had to happen, but it’s still hard to believe.”
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