By Thomas Heaton
Idaho billionaire Frank VanderSloot took control of Hawaii’s largest slaughterhouses in 2019 and set about revitalizing the local beef industry with the local ranchers.
Disagreements quickly surfaced.
VanderSloot’s mainland business ideology has upset some existing relationships built on decades of collaboration, while the newcomer says he is working to level the playing field for all producers and create a viable industry.
“We’re not here to make money. We’re here to help change an industry because it needs to be changed,” VanderSloot said.
The issue boiled over noisily and publicly when Parker Ranch recently announced its exit from Safeway’s shelves, which will see its flagship Paniolo Cattle Co. brand replaced by VanderSloot’s Kamaaina label.
It is a symptom of the yearslong disagreement over whether local beef should continue to be marketed and sold as a premium product or if it should compete with U.S. commodity beef.
“It’s just this very frustrating learning curve for those of us who have been around for years,” Kuahiwi Ranch coowner Michelle Galimba said in an interview. “When are you (VanderSloot) going to see that it’s different?”
Kamaaina branded prepackaged vacuum-sealed bricks of ground beef are the result of one of VanderSloot’s investments on Oahu. Paniolo brand beef shown on top shelf will no longer be available in Safeway stores. (Thomas Heaton/Civil Beat/2023)
Hawaii’s local beef is different than most American beef because it’s raised exclusively on grass, unlike grain-fed mainland cattle.
That difference means Hawaii’s beef can fetch more on the shelf, evidenced by the per-pound price of cattle carcasses doubling to $2 from 2010 to 2019, according to Parker Ranch president Neil “Dutch” Kuyper.
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