HONOLULU (KITV4) - Local ranchers hope for the Department of Agriculture to gain control of 100,000 acres of pasture land that is currently owned by the Department of Land and Natural Resources.
The Hawaii Cattlemen’s Council met with lawmakers at the capitol today to gain support for Senate Bill 77. These ranchers say that their acreage has been declining, and this is the only way for them to stay in production.
“Without the cattle industry surviving and thriving, you don’t have the stewardship of the land,” said Hawai’i Cattlemen's Council member, Jimmy Greenwell. “We think that, in turn, the better the stewardship, the better the benefits that flow to the broader community–whether you eat steak or not.”
If the land is under control of the Department of Agriculture, the Cattlemen's Council says they can make long-term improvements and revamp their ranching efforts.
Do you have a story idea? Email news tips to news@kitv.com
Cait Medearis joined the KITV4 news team as a reporter in February 2023. She had previous stints as a reporter at WNBJ in West Tennessee and KNDU/KNDO in central Washington state. Outside of TV news, Cait has worked in various journalistic roles, including as an editorial assistant in her hometown at Portland Monthly Magazine, as a freelance sports reporter for Fan Media Network in Chicago, and as a ghost writer and digital content manager.
