Kualoa Ranch Lauded For Environmental Stewardship

Carrie and John Morgan accept Kualoa Ranch’s regional 2013 Environmental Stewardship Award at the 2014 Cattle Industry annual convention and trade show, held recently in Nashville, Tenn. Photo from Maya Pollock.

By PAIGE TAKEYA

Visitors who experience Kualoa Ranch’s many recreational tour options are forgiven if they forget that it is still, well, a cattle ranch.

One group that hasn’t forgotten is the Environmental Stewardship Award Program (ESAP), which named Kualoa one of its seven 2013 regional winners in honor of the ranch’s commitment to steward-ship and the improvement of its cattle operation.

All of these seemingly disparate components are inseparable, according to ranch president John Morgan, whose family has owned the ranch since 1850.

“We’re really fortunate that we have a nice blend of cattle ranching, conservation and visitor recreation business,” Morgan told ESAP. “The cattle ranch really provides the backdrop; it provides a location where people can see this beautiful scenery. Without it, it would be a jungle, and people couldn’t really appreciate the beauty.

“Tourism, for us, provides the necessary income and the economic stability to be able to do things like invest in other forms of agriculture and really invest in the conservation efforts that we’ve been doing for years.”

The award, which was presented to him at the 2014 National Cattlemen’s Beef Association Convention and Trade Show in Nashville, Tenn., in early February, signifies that Kualoa topped ranches in California, Nevada, Arizona, Utah and Hawaii for the honor.

ESAP is sponsored by numerous entities, including U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Resources Conservation Service, U.S. Fish and Wildlife and Dow AgroSciences.

Kualoa Ranch’s beef production relies on six breeds of grass-fed, local cattle who are raised without hormones, steroids or unnatural feed. The cattle graze over 1,500 acres on Kualoa’s 4,000-acre property. Prime cuts only can be purchased directly from Kualoa, though ground beef can be found Wednesday at the Windward Mall farmers market.

For more information, call 237-7321 or visit kualoa.com.