Mark Zuckerberg feeds his cows macadamia nuts and beer to create the ‘highest-quality beef in the world’ on his $300 million estate in Hawaii

When Mark Zuckerberg isn’t leading a $1.5 trillion company, he’s finding other ways to keep busy, with no less ambition to create a superlative product. The Meta CEO detailed his hobby of cattle farming in a recent episode of the “Idea Generation” podcast, explaining that he is working to engineer the perfect steak. The project of raising wagyu and angus cattle began in around 2024. “On the ranch, one of my projects is, I’m trying to create the highest-quality beef in the world,” Zuckerberg said. “It’s like this is very low stakes, right. It’s like, I’m not selling it, but it’s like, I’m very into the genetics of the cattle.” Zuckerberg began snapping up land on the Kauai island of Hawaii in 2014, now a $300 million property called Ko’olau Ranch. The complex, shrouded in mystery, is at least 2,3000 acres and has garnered controversy for being located on a native burial site, Wired reported last year. The ranch is home to two mansions with a gym and tennis court, as well as guest houses, and a tunnel leading to an underground shelter approximately the size of a basketball court, according to the outlet. Billionaires such as Marc Benioff and Peter Thiel have similarly purchased large compounds on the chain of islands. A portion of the ranch land’s acreage is for growing macadamia trees for the cattle’s diet. A nutrient-dense food, the nuts are roasted and fed to the cows to add mass to their bodies quickly. To further stimulate the cows’ appetite, Zuckerberg said, he also feeds them beer that he brews and lets the animals choose between drinking room-temperature water and cold beer. Zuckerberg previously noted in 2024 that each cow eats between 5,000 and 10,000 pounds of food each year. Zuckerberg has long had a fascination with cultivating his own food. Former Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey once recalled Zuckerberg serving him a goat he had killed. Dorsey said it was part of Zuckerberg’s yearlong effort to only eat food he killed hi