The hands of a buyer judging a live animal

Not the grade of the carcass, but the living animal.
The fullness of its frame, the luster of its coat, its calm bearing —
judged in the farmyard by a trained eye, one animal at a time.
The Iga way, unchanged for seventy years.

Choosing healthy cattle, by eye

The Eye
Judging the Living Animal

Face to face with the living animal

About 80% of Iga Beef changes hands as living animals, bought by buyers with a trained eye in the farmyard before slaughter.
The order of choosing is the reverse of most wagyu, where the carcass grade sets the price.
First, the animal must be healthy. Flavor follows.

A Japanese Black standing, seen from the legs up
A buyer judging a live animal in the farmyard, the Iga way of choosing
What the Eye Looks For

What a trained eye sees

The fullness and width of the frame, the luster of the coat, the way it walks, the poise of a heifer.
Signs of health that no number can capture — the eye reads them, one animal at a time.
Only cattle raised in good health may bear the name Iga Beef.

A buyer with a Japanese Black in Iga
After the Eye

After the eye: from farmyard to table

An animal chosen alive becomes meat within Iga, and reaches the counters of Iga.
Only a small share ever leaves the region.

01
Bought alive, in the farmyard
A trained eye confirms the animal's health and buys it whole. About 80% of all trade.
02
To the Iga Meat Center
Processed within the region, at the public facility run by Iga and Nabari.
03
Aged and cut by the shop
The buying shop judges the aging. The price was settled while the animal was alive.
04
To certified shops
About 80% of some 1,200 head a year, almost all eaten locally.
05
Beyond Iga, only a little
Only 10–20% leaves the prefecture, as carcasses — which is why so few ever meet it outside Iga.

Summary based on public information from Iga City, Mie Brand, JA Iga and local butchers.

育Nurture➤ 目The Eye➤ 均Balance➤
A buyer facing the cattle in an Iga barn at dawn
See for Yourself

See the healthy cattle, with your own eyes.

For chefs and buyers, we arrange visits to the source — walking the farmyard alongside the buyer and seeing the living animals.
A health no number can convey, seen in Iga.

More ➤
Nurture — The land of Iga➤ Balance — Lean and marbling➤ About the Council➤ Questions — Grading, halal and export➤ The Mark — What makes it authentic➤