The OTHER Plantation in Old Plantation Days Old Plantation Days, February 2014 

Besides Sugar Plantations there were other plantation size crops grown in Hawaii.  Pineapple plantations covered the slopes of Lanai, Molokai, Maui and Oahu Island, and Macadamia Nut orchards were established on the Big Island of Hawaii.

 At the close of World War II my father was discharged from the command of his “four-stacker” destroyer at Pearl Harbor.  He soon found employment at Ewa Plantation, as an irrigation Luna.  After just a couple years my Dad was asked him to head up the establishment of a large Macadamia plantation at Keaau on the Big Island of Hawaii.  Now what gave my father the lead to start up this operation?  Well, he had a degree in Forestry from the University of Oregon, and Macadamia’s were a tree, so I guess they thought he was the best qualified to grow this new tree crop for Hawaii!

In 1948 they started clearing the forests of Panaewa with Caterpillar Bull Dozers for the start of what would become the largest macadamia nut plantation in the WORLD.  Royal Hawaiian Macadamia Nut Company was a subsidiary of one of the Big Five companies, Castle and Cook, Ltd.  It was a very forward thinking project to diversify the agricultural basis of Castle and Cook from Sugar and Pineapple to now also include macadamia nuts.  Castle and Cook owned the Dole brand name which still exists today.

Although macadamia orchards were not considered a “plantation” back in those days the staff and management of the orchard were intricately linked to their sugar plantation brothers across the islands.  We were all large agricultural employers and we shared staff, shared parties, and family bonds were made strong.  Some of my best friends today are the sons and daughters of sugarcane plantation managers of the past.  We all grew up together, the families of plantation Luna’s.

There was a time in my life when I could not eat another macadamia nut!  I grew up with ‘em, and I ate ‘em till I was sick of ‘em!  Give me a can of almonds or peanuts I would be happy.  Now- a- days I again adore Macadamia nuts and marvel at the different flavors that are produced by the processors.  Can you believe there is a “SPAM” flavored mac nut product?!  Yes, it happens to be one of Hamakua Macadamia Nuts’ best sellers, but according to the President, Richard Schnitzler, it appears to be popular as a novelty item for a tourist or as a care package item to ‘Local’ kids off in college on the mainland.

As a rebel hippie teenager, I once chastised my father for the rampant clearing of native forest in Panaewa for the macadamia orchards and processing facility.  He responded quite calmly, “Johnny, it was a different time back then.  We were hailed as heroes for clearing the lands and establishing business and employment.”  “Yes, we ran into fields thick with maile, large patches of ‘Awa and Ulu trees.  But they had to go to make room for the young grafted macadamia trees that were being prepared in the nursery.…”  Then he added, “We found a few very rare Hawaiian native trees as we were clearing.  I called up Herbert Shipman, (besides being the heir and owner of W. H. Shipman, Ltd. He was an extremely renowned botanist).  This one tree we found was a native Gardenia, called Nanu in Hawaiian and its Latin binomial was Gardenia remyii.  Before the tree was dozed we put several air layers on the branches.  After the air layers were successful we all took them home to nurture and grow…..Look out back, that’s my airlayer in the backyard”.   I looked up at this beautiful flowering gardenia with white yellow and orange flowers.  I realized that my father was not the evil destroyer of the rainforest, but one who cared for the rare and native trees.  He had a job to do and the orchard needed to be planted, but some things needed to be saved. 

Royal Hawaiian Macadamia Nut Company became the show case of macadamia nut orchards and processing worldwide.  Soon other countries wanted to clear their own forests and create their own plantations of macadamia nuts.  The “Old Plantation Days of Macadamia Nuts” in Hawaii had over 90% of all nuts produced in the World.  Now we have macadamia nuts grown in Australia, Kenya and South Africa, several Central American countries, and our share of the world production has dropped to just over 30%.

With all the competition from other third world growers and processors there is one thing that has remained unique to Hawaii, we produce the finest best quality kernels in the world.  Our Hawaiian climate, soils, special varieties produced by the University of Hawaii and the expertise of good employees and staff has given us the distinction of being the best in the world.  I am happy to say that this is one plantation crop that still exists today and has not gone the way of Sugarcane and Pineapple.