Mark Zuckerberg has perplexed the internet with his ‘out of touch’ cattle ranch on his Hawaii estate.
On 10 January, the Meta billionaire posted on Instagram a picture of himself solely eating a medium rare steak from his Ko’olau ranch on his $100m-valued, 1,400-acre Kauai compound. There, Zuckerberg reportedly farms wagyu and Angus cattle – both of which produce some of the most expensive, sought-after beef in the world.
He wrote in the caption, “Started raising cattle at [the] Ko’olau ranch on Kauai, and my goal is to create some of the highest quality beef in the world.”
“Each cow eats 5,000-10,000lbs of food each year, so that’s a lot of acres of macadamia trees,” he continued. “My daughters help plant the mac trees and take care of our different animals. We’re still early in the journey and it’s fun improving on it every season. Of all my projects, this is the most delicious.”
On X, the social media platform owned by rival Elon Musk, many mocked Zuckerberg’s new career as a cattle farmer.
“Proud of you, man,” journalist Andrew Greenberg wrote. “You really fulfilled that dream of putting food in your mouth in the manner that causes the most climate change possible for a human being.”
Unsurprisingly, Shalin Gala from animal rights group PETA condemned Zuckerberg, writing: “Mark, the Dark Ages called and it wants you back.” Meanwhile, critic @coloradotravis added, “The absolute stones it must take post ‘I’m growing a macadamia orchard to feed my artisan wagyu’ during an era of rising populism.”
“This is some classic rich people s***,” one person wrote, while another commented: “Does money truly disconnect people’s brains from recognizing human and environmental destruction?”
According to an investigation by Wired, the billionaire’s cattle are fed macadamia nuts and beer produced within the property. Zuckerberg’s beer strategy is in line with tactics some cattle farmers – specifically those that farm Kobe cattle –reportedly use to give to stimulate their animals appetites, although the practice is reportedly uncommon.
“Raising cattle on water-intensive macadamia nuts and beer is just a billionaire’s strange sideshow,” Mitch Jones, a policy director at Food & Water Watch, told the outlet. “We need real agriculture reform to address the inequities in our food system and the reality of a warming climate.”
Jones added, “We need to promote the viability of small and medium-sized farms that work to feed everyone, not just wealthy celebrities.”
This isn’t the first time Zuckerberg has come under fire for his Ko’olau Ranch compound, with him initially criticised for purchasing the land in 2014. At the time, many critics pointed out that the billionaire’s purchases came at the expense of the local Kauian community, who were reportedly pressured by Zuckerberg to sell him acres of their ancestral land. In 2017, the Facebook founder ultimately apologized in an op-ed published in the local Kauai newspaper.
