Japan’s Kobe Beef: Is It Too Expensive To Eat?

Japan’s Kobe Beef: Is It Too Expensive To Eat?

Wagyu is the name given to Japanese cattle that are known to produce the best beef in the world, which is known as Kobe beef. The word derivation is simple; wa means Japan and gyu means cow.

This simplicity comes with a price tag that might have even made even JP Morgan take a second look, namely, about $500 per steak in some of Tokyo’s finer dining establishments (and that’s without an appetizer, drink or even piano bar).

Kobe beef has become a household name around the world. Why it is so good, well known and expensive are questions many may ask. Outside of Japan’s borders, Kobe beef is the best known type of wagyu, but there are many different kinds of high quality Japanese beef such as Matsuzaka, Mishima and Omi among others, that are presenting some stiff competition.

What is the beef exactly when it comes to Kobe, you might ask? The answer is simple. The marbled fat content is what determines the grade of the meat and with Japanese beef that concerns the white parts of fat that are known as sashi.

Sashi is usually interspersed between layers of red meat and gives the beef a marbled look. Intense patterns are deliberately created and intended to make the meat literally ”melt in the mouth.” This feature is by far the most prized aspect of Japanese beef.

The fat content in Japanese beef is primarily mono-unsaturated, which translates into beef that is actually known to lower bad cholesterol!

The marbling is the result of much time and effort, and cows in Japan, despite the fact that they are ultimately sacrificed, live lives fit for emperors (albeit doomed royalty). Much care goes into their feeding, which usually entails high quality grains.

Each farmer has his own mystical blend of feed. While some ingredients are as heavily guarded as family heirlooms, some diets are known to include soybeans and okara, which is a byproduct of tofu. Water is also important and local mineral varieties are often part of a good cattle diet, which ensures the best quality meat.

Believe it or not, many farmers give their cows beer and saki to keep their appetites healthy during the warmer months of the year. Some farmers spit sake onto their cows and rub it in with a brush, which they claim helps to balance the distribution of marble content and keeps the lice and ticks at bay.

Cows raised in stalls tend to develop fatty marbling and for this reason, are taken outside to frolic and play in the fresh air and sunshine. Some breeders even go so far as to play soothing music for their cows to keep them relaxed. (It is not known whether they prefer classical or popular varieties.)

Japanese beef is a delicacy by any standard but expect to pay through nose and every other body part for any meat from these pampered cows!

By MDeeDubroff on 16-10-2009

EU-Korea trade deal puts pressure on Obama to act

Thu Oct 15, 2009 4:35pm EDT

By Doug Palmer

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama faced increased pressure on Thursday to win approval of a free trade deal with South Korea after the European Union locked up its own pact with Asia's third-largest market.

"We have concluded our negotiations with the EU, which has almost a similar economic size as the United States," South Korean Ambassador to the United States Han Duk-soo said.

"President Obama will visit Korea in November and we hope we will make some progress before that" to resolve concerns blocking approval of the U.S.-Korea free trade pact, Han said in a speech at the Heritage Foundation.

The United States and South Korea signed their free trade deal more than two years ago. But U.S. lawmaker concerns over beef and auto trade with the longtime ally that borders North Korea has blocked approval of the agreement.

Many U.S. lawmakers argue the free trade pact fails to tear down "non-tariff barriers" that keep out American cars. Others want Seoul to remove remaining barriers to U.S. beef imports that stemming from the discovery mad cow disease in the United States several years ago.

Since then, South Korea has continued negotiating free trade deals. It initialed a pact with the European Union on Thursday expected to go into force by the middle of 2010 and is currently in talks with Canada, Mexico and Peru.

"We would like to be the hub of free trade agreements in East Asia," Han said, citing a study that U.S. companies could lose 380,000 jobs to competitors in the EU and Canada if the U.S.-Korea free trade agreement is not approved.

The EU-Korea trade deal could be worth 100 billion euros ($149 billion) to both economies and advocates says it will help both sides fight the worst financial crisis in decades.

It also comes at a time when the United States is already losing market share in South Korea to the EU, Japan and China.

US SAYS "KEENLY INTERESTED" IN EU-KOREA DEAL

Obama sided with the United Auto Workers and other opponents of the South Korean free trade agreement during last year's presidential campaign.

After meeting with South Korean President Lee Myung-bak in June, the two leaders agreed to work on outstanding concerns. However, Seoul has steadfastly refused to renegotiate auto provisions that are the biggest obstacle to U.S. approval.

A spokeswoman for the U.S. Trade Representative's office said the United States was "keenly interested" in the implications of the EU-Korea deal for the United States.

"EU firms compete directly with U.S. suppliers in key segments of the large and growing Korean market, such as machinery, chemicals, plastics, auto parts, and dairy products," USTR spokesman Carol Guthrie said.

"Ambassador (Ron) Kirk believes it is vital to maintain the competitiveness of US businesses and workers in this important market," Guthrie said, referring to the U.S. Trade Representative.

(Additional reporting by Darren Ennis in Brussels; Editing by Cynthia Osterman)

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