Moloka‘i Ranch plans to begin selling its own brand of locally raised beef this fall as an initial piece of an effort to restart parts of the company that were shut down six years ago.
The company announced Monday that it intends to bring to market 100 percent grass-fed cattle born, raised and finished on Molokai under a Moloka‘i Ranch Beef brand.
A "signature chef" is being sought to launch the brand at an exclusive event, the company said.
Moloka‘i Ranch did not provide details about the size of its re-established ranching operations, which it said comprise "a growing herd of cattle roaming 30,000 acres of pastures."
Company officials were not available for additional information.
In the statement, Moloka‘i Ranch also said it has established a program to raise certain breeds of Japanese cattle known as wagyu within the next few years.
"The island’s climate and mob-grazing methods are ideal for producing consistently high-quality meat," the ranch said.
Moloka‘i Ranch, owned by Hong Kong-based conglomerate Guoco Group Ltd., ceased ranching in 2008 along with resort operations and other businesses on the island. That move by the island’s largest landowner and employer cost the jobs of 120 employees.
At that time the ranch turned over its cattle to longtime ranch manager Jimmy Duvauchelle, a fourth-generation Molokai cowboy who established Pohakuloa Ranch on about 3,000 acres leased from Molokai Ranch.
Monday’s announcement follows a 2012 news release that said the company was repairing infrastructure so that it could start raising and breeding cattle. The 2012 announcement also said Moloka‘i Ranch intended to start raising pigs in 2013.
"Moloka‘i Ranch has a long history of ranching and agriculture that dates back more than a century to the days of King Kamehameha V," Clay Rumbaoa, company CEO, said in the 2012 statement.
Ranching on Molokai dates back to 1833 when about 200 longhorn cattle were introduced by Kamehameha III. Moloka‘i Ranch was formed in 1897 on about 100,000 acres.
In the 1980s, disease threats devastated the industry, which was rebuilt and continued by Moloka‘i Ranch until 2008, when the company ceased nearly all its operations after failing to win enough community support for developing 200 lots for luxury oceanfront homes at Laau Point. The company said the project was necessary to finance improvements in its struggling resort and ranch operations.
The development plan included conveying 50,000 acres to a community land trust for perpetual protection funded by a cut of Laau lot sales. Some Molokai residents including a handful of community leaders endorsed the plan, but opponents said the trade-off wasn’t worth it.
Since then the company has said little about restarting shuttered operations.
Rumbaoa was hired in 2011. Guoco Group noted in its 2012 annual report that Moloka‘i Ranch was embarking on a four-prong strategy of agriculture, animal husbandry, green energy and property development.
In Monday’s announcement the company said it is continuing to explore renewable energy and has made recent progress that soon will result in sustainable farming and restoring what it called "landmark resorts."
On its website, Moloka‘i Ranch said its shuttered Kaluakoi Hotel, golf course, 22-room Molokai Lodge and commercial buildings in Maunaloa town are the company’s greatest assets intended for revitalization.
