Seen from outside the region, some things are hard to read.
The grading, the numbers, how far it can travel.
Here are the questions we are asked most, answered as far as we know the answers.
The questions we are asked
Questions
Questions
About Iga Beef
What the name requires, and why it has never been sold by grade.
Once this is clear, the rest follows quickly.
The name and its definition
01What is Iga Beef?
The Iga Beef Production Promotion Council defines it by four conditions. It must be Japanese Black (Kuroge Washu). It must be a heifer that has never calved. It must have been raised by a member of the Council. And its final and longest period of rearing — at least 12 months — must have been within Iga. If any one is missing, it is not Iga Beef. Birthplace is not among the conditions; what is asked is where the animal spent its longest and last months.
02Why is no A5 grade quoted?
Most Iga Beef is traded while the animal is still alive. A butcher or cattle dealer travels to the farm and judges the living animal — its condition, the set of its frame, the gloss of its coat, how the muscle has come on — and buys it one head at a time. Because it does not pass through market auction and carcass grading, it has simply never been described in the language of grades. The practice is rare in Japan and has continued for over seventy years.
This is not a judgement on the grading system. It is a different tradition of choosing.
This is not a judgement on the grading system. It is a different tradition of choosing.
03How does it differ from Kobe or Matsusaka beef?
The definitions are close: like Matsusaka, Iga Beef must be a Japanese Black heifer that has never calved. The differences are how the animal is chosen, and how few there are. Iga has kept its practice of choosing the living animal by eye, and ships roughly 1,200–1,300 head a year — less than a sixth of Matsusaka's some 7,400.
Further back, Iga is recorded as a source of feeder cattle for the Matsusaka and Omi regions.
Further back, Iga is recorded as a source of feeder cattle for the Matsusaka and Omi regions.
04How rare is it?
Between 25 and 30 farms; roughly 1,200–1,300 head a year. About 80% is sold through shops certified by the Council.
The small number is not a matter of holding back. When every animal is looked at individually and raised with that much care, this is what a year comes to.
The small number is not a matter of holding back. When every animal is looked at individually and raised with that much care, this is what a year comes to.
05Iga is known for ninja. Is there a connection to the beef?
There is a story that Iga ninja carried dried Iga beef as preserved food in the Edo period. It is a local legend rather than something the records confirm.
What the records do show is older. Kokugyū Jūzu, a catalogue of Japan’s notable cattle compiled in 1310, already lists the cattle of Iga. Cattle have been raised in this valley for about as long as the ninja have been remembered — that much can be said.
What the records do show is older. Kokugyū Jūzu, a catalogue of Japan’s notable cattle compiled in 1310, already lists the cattle of Iga. Cattle have been raised in this valley for about as long as the ninja have been remembered — that much can be said.
Sourcing
Sourcing and export
What is settled, we state. What is not, we say is not.
With so few animals, terms change with the destination and the season.
Shipping and arrangements
06Can it be exported? Where has it gone?
We have exported Iga Beef to the United States, Malaysia and Australia.
The paperwork and procedures differ by destination, so tell us which market you are in and we will come back with what can actually be arranged.
The paperwork and procedures differ by destination, so tell us which market you are in and we will come back with what can actually be arranged.
07Is halal supply available?
Halal supply can be arranged.
We do not display a certifier's mark on this site. Halal certification belongs to the processing facility, not to us, and we will not present ourselves as holding one. Requirements differ by market, so tell us what yours asks for and we will confirm what can be put in place.
We do not display a certifier's mark on this site. Halal certification belongs to the processing facility, not to us, and we will not present ourselves as holding one. Requirements differ by market, so tell us what yours asks for and we will confirm what can be put in place.
08What about cuts, minimum order, lead time, chilled or frozen?
We do not publish a fixed minimum order or lead time. The number of animals is limited and terms move with the season and the route, and a published figure that turns out not to hold would get in the way more than help.
Tell us the destination, the volume you have in mind and the cuts you want, and we will come back with what can be arranged and when.
Tell us the destination, the volume you have in mind and the cuts you want, and we will come back with what can be arranged and when.
09What does it cost?
Trading is head by head, and prices move with the season and the market.
Once the volume and the cuts are settled, we will quote.
Once the volume and the cuts are settled, we will quote.
Provenance
Checking what you have
The name travels with the route it came by.
Here is what to look for when you meet it outside the region.
Authenticity and this site
10How do I know it is genuine?
There are two. One is the mark — “The Yokozuna of Beef, Iga Beef”. The other is the route the meat travelled: about 80% of Iga Beef reaches people through shops certified by the Council.
If you meet the name outside the region, ask which route it came by. The Mark page explains the trademark in full.
If you meet the name outside the region, ask which route it came by. The Mark page explains the trademark in full.
11Who operates this site?
Guida LLC, a company that helps Japanese producers reach markets overseas.
The Iga Beef Production Promotion Council owns the trademark. It does not operate this site, and this site does not speak on the Council's behalf.
The Iga Beef Production Promotion Council owns the trademark. It does not operate this site, and this site does not speak on the Council's behalf.
If your question is not here, ask us. Where we do not know, we will say so.
We will listen at the source, and propose in keeping with the Iga way.
Ask Us
For the questions still left
Tell us your market and the volume you have in mind, and we will come back with what can be arranged.
An early enquiry is welcome.