{"id":117289,"date":"2021-12-31T08:07:10","date_gmt":"2021-12-31T18:07:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/hawaiicompro.wpengine.com\/?p=117289"},"modified":"2023-07-20T16:52:44","modified_gmt":"2023-07-21T02:52:44","slug":"back-at-the-ranch","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/hawaii.com\/back-at-the-ranch\/","title":{"rendered":"Back at The Ranch"},"content":{"rendered":"\r\n

Sustainable agriculture is a hot topic in Hawai\u2018i. There\u2019s been a strong farm-to-fork movement in the islands for years, widely seen in award-winning restaurants supportive of local growers and fishermen. With farmers\u2019 markets in every neighborhood and an abundance of fresh, healthful products that flourish in Hawai\u2018i\u2019s climate, there has never been such enthusiasm for locally grown ingredients.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

But while many think of the increased interest in a localicious movement as something born over the past two decades or so, Native Hawaiians were keenly aware of the relationship between longevity and their lands. Travel just a short distance from central Honolulu to O\u2018ahu\u2019s Windward side and you\u2019ll find evidence of ancient sustainable agriculture and ingenious fishing practices. At Kualoa Ranch, a 4,000-acre stretch of land dominated by high peaked mountains and spectacular coastline, there\u2019s been sustainability and respect for the land for centuries.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

For Hawaiians, Kualoa was one of the most cherished and sacred places on O\u2018ahu. A training ground for Hawaiian royalty, home to Hawaiian kings, and a place of refuge, Kualoa was revered as a magical place steeped in spiritual and agricultural history. With its stunning high ridge (Kualoa means \u201cLong Back\u201d in Hawaiian), lush green valleys and impressive mountain peaks, the ranch is home to, among other things, a herd of Angus-cross cattle, and deep into the valley of the ranch, centuries-old Hawaiian fishpond has been nurtured back to health by the breeding of some of the freshest tasting oysters in the world.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

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Ironically, Kualoa Ranch is known to millions as the Hollywood backdrop to movies and television shows like Jurassic Park and LOST, It\u2019s also known as a place of adventure where zip line tours take guests deep into the trails and high above sheltered coastlines. But this connection between ancestors and the \u2018aina, the ancient and the modern, is the driving force behind the farming methods at this impressive center of local agriculture.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

With all-natural grass-fed beef, farm-raised shrimp, and free-range eggs, Kualoa Ranch quietly has established itself as a significant player in the sustainable food movement, and no better evidence can be found than in oysters farmed in the 800-year-old Moli\u2018i fishpond, where the ingenious methods first applied by Hawaiians have been revitalized with spectacular results. A 4,000-foot-long wall, constructed 800 years ago, isolates the pond\u2019s body of water from the ocean. A freshwater source from the mountains flows into the pond, and the result is an estuarine environment that promotes a single cell algae bloom and a near-perfect environment, it seems, for oysters.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

Maintaining the ancient fishpond and farming the oysters that flourish there is something oyster maiden Ku\u2018uipo McCartey takes very seriously.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

\u201cI feel that I am taking care of one of the most beautiful fishponds in Hawai\u2018i,\u201d she says enthusiastically. \u201cIt\u2019s something that we all take very seriously at Kualoa.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n