Hana Ranch in Hawaii: Beef produced hand-in-hand with nature

Of course, things are never that straightforward in the livestock business.

Hawaiian ranchers deal with a diversity of ecosystems not seen anywhere else in the world - the archipelago has ten out of 12 global climate zones.

Along with producing a high quality beef demanded by the near ten million tourists that visit the Pacific Island Western state of the US, ranchers are stewards of a unique land mass. They must watch over critical habitat, protect endangered species, manage watersheds, wildfire risk and work constantly to reduce invasive species.

The costs of producing beef against that sort of background are high.

As such, most calves raised in Hawaii are shipped to the mainland to be finished in feedlots because that provides the more profitable marketing option.

Hawaiian ranchers produce around 55,000 head of cattle per annum, according to the Hawaii Beef Industry Council. That's only 22.9 per cent of the state's total demand for beef.

In any case, more than 40,000 of those go as live cattle exports.

They are transported in what locals call 'cowtainers' - modified shipping containers with two decks that will hold 66 calves, average weight 230 kilograms or 500 pounds.

There is limited capacity to ship by air.

The cost to ship can be as much as 10 times typical trans-Pacific shipping costs. Therefore, a calf in Hawaii brings about half of what a similar calf would bring in, say, South Dakota.

So to build demand for a more high-end local product, which would provide a better marketing option, some ranchers have joined forces to move into the branded beef space.

Six ranchers in the Maui region, the second largest of the Hawaiian islands, are selling under the Maui Cattle Company label, which is a guarantee of entire-of-life grassfed and a focus on managing natural resources and sustainability across all aspects of livestock production.

The producers have formed a co-operative and are part-owners of a local abattoir.

The 1450 hectare Hana Ranch is one.

Owned by family foundation Hana Ranch Stewards LLC, and managed by Duane Lammers, who hails from the Northern Great Plains of the United States mainland in the state of South Dakota, Hana Ranch is located on the very eastern tip of the island of Maui.

ALSO IN BEEF:

It receives about 1400mm, or 55 inches, of rain in a typical year.

"We do not have any tilled soils so we are strictly a grass ranch, which is healthier for the cattle, our soil and our customers," Mr Lammers explained.

"We are very focused on managing the natural resource, trying many different methods of controlling invasive plants and animals.

"Feral pigs are a contributor to invasive plant growth. Then there are some plants introduced that are non-invasive in their home climate but terrible in our eco-region.

"We have started planting orchards that we can graze our cattle under in rotation."

Hana Ranch now has 10ha of orchards, mostly breadfruit, along with lemons, limes, grapefruit and bananas.

Mr Lammers said some future tree plantings would include long-term hardwoods.

Hana Ranch is currently running 520 red and black Angus breeders. It is on the wetter side of the island and while the dry side has been affected by drought, Hana was lucky to have good conditions last season.

Cows are joined to Angus bulls.

"We have now moved our calving to fall to be in counter cycle to most of the calving in the US," he said.

Calves are typically marketed at weights of between 230 and 270kg (500 to 600 pounds).

Marketing has always been a big challenge for cattle production on Hawaii, Mr Lammers said.

"If there is a drought the options are limited," he said.

"There are no feedlots to send cattle to on the islands and slaughter capacity is limited."

Mr Lammers grew up ranching cattle and has a degree in animal science, and a Masters in natural resource management with an emphasis on animal behaviour.

"In my mid 20s, I started working with bison and my wife and I leased a 25,000 acre ranch where we ran 2000 bison," he said.

"Working with bison and really trying to understand how to work them in a low-stress manner really helped my cattle handling."

He says the attention on cattle methane in the quest to avert climate change is unwarranted and difficult to understand.

"In North America, the number of ruminates is not much different today than it was in the 1400s - yet supposedly cattle are the big problem," he said.

"That said, I believe every industry, including the beef industry, should do what is feasible to lower greenhouse gases. A good first step is breeding for more feed efficient animals.

"But we forget every mammal gives off methane, including humans. And that we are covering up thousands of acres of land with concrete.

"In the US, thousands of acres of ranch and farm land is being carved up into acreages that has become non-productive other than lawn with short roots that sequesters minimal carbon compared to diverse grasses on ruminant grazed lands."