Maui Land & Pineapple Company, Inc.’s (ML&P) origins are intimately connected to the entrepreneurial and agricultural activity of the Baldwin family. The Baldwins arrived on Maui in 1835, when Dr. Dwight Baldwin and his wife Charlotte came to Lahaina as members of the Fourth Missionary Company. Their sons, Henry Perrine Baldwin and David Dwight Baldwin, laid the foundation for Maui Land & Pineapple in the late 1800s, through the acquisition of land in both East Maui and West Maui. The first significant building block for ML&P’s current holdings in West Maui was H.P. Baldwin’s 1889 acquisition of the Honokohau and Honolua ahupua`a (traditional Hawaiian division of land running from the peaks of the mountains to the sea).

Pineapple harvester, circa 1946.

The Baldwin family’s experimentation with hala kahiki, or pineapple, began in 1890, when D. Dwight Baldwin first planted the fruit in Ha`iku, in East Maui. His brother H.P. Baldwin predicted a golden future for the sweet fruit, and in 1903 he and D. Dwight Baldwin formed Haiku Fruit & Packing Company, Inc., giving birth to the pineapple industry on Maui. H.P. Baldwin owned more land suitable for pineapple cultivation, and in 1909 he formed Keahua Ranch Company, Ltd., which became the Maui Pineapple Company, Ltd. in 1932.

The Baldwins continued to expand their holdings, making approximately 125 purchases between 1889 and 1910, and an additional 100 purchases between 1912 and 1923. In West Maui, the family’s holdings were known as Honolua Ranch, which was devoted to raising cattle and farming taro, mango, aloe and coffee beans. Scottish Ranch Manager David T. Fleming added pineapple to the Ranch’s operations in 1912, and in 1924 Honolua Ranch became Baldwin Packers, which sold pineapple under its own company labels. By 1933 Baldwin Packers owned and managed over 22,600 acres on Maui.

Baldwin packers

The Baldwins’ East Maui and West Maui holdings and pineapple operations were united in 1962, when Baldwin Packers merged with Maui Pineapple Company. In 1969, Maui Land & Pineapple Company, Inc. was created and went public, with Colin C. Cameron, a fifth-generation descendant of the Baldwin family, acting as its first president. A man of extraordinary vision, Cameron saw the West Maui Mountains as a sanctuary for man and nature in the rapidly changing Islands. He conceived of a resort that would exist in harmony with its environment, which resulted in the creation of the Kapalua Resort. In 1975 ML&P incorporated the Kapalua Land Company, Ltd. (KLC) as its subsidiary dedicated to resort development and the Maui Pineapple Company, Ltd. (MPC) as its subsidiary devoted to pineapple and other agricultural operations.

Pineapple field on Maui

KLC helped ML&P diversify its activities with its successful operation of the Kapalua Resort. This master-planned resort community was built with the understanding that all development must conform to the natural terrain. The Kapalua Bay Hotel first opened its doors in 1978, the same year that the Honolua and Mokule`ia Bays were declared marine-life sanctuaries. In the late 1970s KLC also began the development and sale of condominiums and luxury single-family properties. The Kapalua Resort’s three golf courses, The Bay Course, The Village Course and The Plantation Course were opened in 1975, 1981 and 1991, respectively. All three courses are Certified Audubon Cooperative Sanctuaries. In 1992 The Ritz-Carlton, Kapalua opened, having been moved inland after initial digging unearthed an ancient Hawaiian burial ground, now the Honokahua preservation site.

ML&P formalized its commitment to the environment with the 1988 dedication of 8,661 acres of its West Maui land, including Pu`u Kukui, the highest peak in the West Maui Mountains, to conservation. This area became the Pu`u Kukui Watershed Preserve, which remains the largest private nature preserve in the state and protects one of the most pristine and biologically rich areas remaining in Hawai`i.

Maui Land & Pineapple Company, Inc.’s first 100 years were dedicated to land acquisition, agricultural experimentation, resort development and business consolidation. This activity was governed by a commitment to core values and a demand for high performance, which will continue to guide ML&P as we cultivate our next 100 years.