Hawaii Cattle Producers Cooperative Association
Hawaii Cattle Producers Cooperative Association was formed in 1984 to assist its members in marketing their cattle. Membership has grown five times over its original 10 members and now represents cattle producers from Kauai, Oahu, Molokai, Maui and Hawaii.
Fifty rancher-members comprise HCPCA today and together they own over 46,600 or 58.3% of the state’s total of 80,000 breeding cows and bred heifers and operate 455,000 or 45.5% acres of state’s 1,000,000 acres utilized for grazing. Only bona fide producers in the State of Hawaii may join the cooperative.
The loss of infrastructure with the closing of the feeding operations at Big Island Meat at Hamakua and Hawaii Meat at Barbers Point on Oahu forced ranchers to seek an alternative market for their cattle. In 1993 HCPCA purchased cow-tainers to transport cattle to the West Coast and implemented a program to manage cattle on the mainland.
Through a third-party hired to grow and finish cattle, the majority of member ranches have been able to retain ownership of their livestock as far as to the packinghouse if they so choose. Today, HCPCA oversees the growing and finishing of approximately 8,000 to 10,000 head per year in California and the Pacific Northwest. In 2004, HCPCA became a member Country Natural Beef, a cooperative in the state of Oregon and coop members place approximately 7,500-10,000 head annually in its branded beef market program. Also, several others ship with the coop and find their own mainland market alliances in Texas, Colorado, Nebraska, Oklahoma and Kansas, first on winter wheat pasture and then into the feed yards.
In 1995, HCPCA opened a subsidiary company, Kona Specialty Meats, to process cull cows and bulls for its members. KSM was a federally inspected processing plant and its purpose was to merchandise the lower value cuts from our island culls into value-added products that would be sold in retail commerce. KSM operations shut down operations in April 2002 due to a slow down in sales and other problems.
In 2009, HCPCA began producing Hawaiian Red Veal utilizing 5 to 6 month old calves. These calves have just been weaned off the mother cow and have eaten some grass on pasture and have been allowed to roam. No hormones or antibiotics have been administered to these young animals.
In 2010, HCPCA began producing and supplying Foodland Supermarkets with a quality primal ground beef product in significant quantities for Foodland stores on Oahu and Kauai. This endeavor returned the coop to the purpose of merchandising the lower value cuts of its cull cows and bulls into value-added products.
Equal Opportunity Employer Statement
Hawaii Cattle Producers Cooperative Association is an Equal Opportunity Employer. This company does not and will not discriminate in employment and personnel practices on the basis of race, sex, age, handicap, religion, national origin or any other basis prohibited by applicable law. Hiring, transferring and promotion practices are performed without regard to the above listed items.