Coffee was introduced to Hawaii in 1813 by the Spanish physician and royal interpreter, Don Francisco de Paula y Marin. Coffee was being cultivated in Ka’u in 1894 by J.C. Searle. However his coffee business was not commercially successful due to the competition for land and labor posed by the sugar plantations. 

When the sugar industry collapsed one hundred years later and the Ka’u sugar plantation closed in 1996, the displaced workers looked to coffee as one of the most promising avenues for post-plantation agriculture.

The first years of the fledgling Ka’u coffee industry were rife with challenges as the farmers struggled to acquire the daunting array of agricultural, processing and business skills required to succeed in the coffee business. The farmers persevered and quietly began producing an amazing coffee, rooted in Hawaiian coffee-producing tradition but displaying a new and exciting flavor profile. 

Ka’u coffee slowly began to make a name for itself among local coffee buffs but remained virtually unknown outside the region until recently. This began to change with Ka'u Coffee was entered in the SCAA competition in 2007 by Ka'u Farm and Ranch Company and it's manager Chris Manfredi. In the past four years, Ka'u coffee farmers have won numerous international awards building an excellent reputation for their fine Ka'u Coffee.

The story of Ka’u coffee has just begun, as the farmers build on their success with new energy and commitment to quality.