Hamakua Meat Processors LLC

Hamakua Meat Processors LLC operates at 39-3320 Old Mamalahoa Hwy in Ookala, Hawaii County, under USDA establishment number M1843. The federal record lists both meat slaughter and meat processing activities, with cattle, sheep and lamb reported as species slaughtered under inspection. FSIS classes the plant as very small and places its slaughter volume in the lowest category, under 1,000 head per year. The grant of inspection date on file is March 7, 2025. The plant also reports custom-exempt slaughter, in which animals owned by the customer are processed and packaged marked Not for Sale, and reports retail-exempt sales.

The company's website describes a business model built around buying cattle from a select client list of Big Island ranches raising 100 percent grass-fed and grass-finished animals. The plant processes and butchers those animals, pays the ranch by the pound, and sells the resulting beef to grocery stores, restaurants and wholesale distributors, as well as directly to customers through order-ahead pickup. The site states that ranchers raise livestock on Big Island pastures free from growth hormones and antibiotics.

On quality assurance, the website states that a USDA inspector is assigned on site every day the plant is open, that there is a full in-house lab for product testing, and that the company carries third party certifications covering humane handling of animals and product safety. The specific certifying bodies are not named in the material on file. Details beyond what is described here, including custom-processing booking procedures, fees and cut sheet options, are not yet on file.

The federal record lists Hamakua Meat Processors as a very small establishment doing both slaughter and processing, with cattle, sheep and lamb reported as species slaughtered under inspection and a slaughter volume category of under 1,000 head per year. The plant reports custom-exempt slaughter, meaning it processes animals owned by the customer and returns packages marked Not for Sale. Separately, the website describes a purchase model rather than a service model for ranchers: the company buys beef from a select client list of ranches raising 100 percent grass-fed animals, processes and butchers it, and pays the ranch by the pound. Booking procedures, lead times, minimums, kill fees and cut and wrap charges are not stated in the sources on file. Ranchers should contact the plant directly at (808) 747-4850 to confirm what work is being accepted as listed.

Hamakua Meat Processors LLC reports custom-exempt slaughter to FSIS, which means it can process an animal a customer already owns (a whole, half, or share bought before slaughter) and return it in packages marked Not for Sale. Most small farms have one or two plants they book with, and the plant's calendar decides the delivery date.

There is no walk-in retail counter described in the sources. The website lists individual cuts with per-pound prices and directs customers to place orders through its online order form for pickup. Listed pickup points are the Pahoa Farmers Market on Pahoa Kapoho Rd in Pahoa on Sundays 8am to 12pm, the Kamuela Farmers Market at Pukalani Stables on Saturdays 7:30am to 1pm, the Pukalani Midweek Market at Pukalani Stables on Wednesdays 8:30am to 1pm, and the Ookala plant itself by appointment only. The site instructs customers to order by Monday 6pm for Wednesday market pickup, or by Wednesday 6pm for Saturday and Sunday market pickup. Halves and quarters, bundles, delivery and shipping are not mentioned in the sources.

If you are buying a half or quarter animal, the plant is where the animal is processed; the farm sells you the animal. Read how to buy a half cow for the sequence and the math.