Kobe Beef and wagyu: what the official standard requires

Kobe Beef is a registered name with a written standard: Tajima-gyu cattle, a heifer or steer, born and raised in Hyogo, with a carcass that scores BMS 6 or higher, yield grade A or B and a meat quality score of 4 or above. The Kobe Beef Marketing and Distribution Promotion Association publishes these criteria, and MAFF lists the name as geographical indication number 3.

What makes beef Kobe Beef?

Beef is Kobe Beef when it meets the Association’s whole standard: the cattle, the place and the grading. The Japan Meat Grading Association grades the carcasses.

Status shows how well a figure is sourced. High means the Association’s pages or MAFF’s register. Medium means the Association’s own pages differ.

To verify The Association’s pages differ on carcass weight. Its public classification page gives only the upper limit, 499.9 kg. Its bylaws list 270 to 499.9 kg for cows and 300 to 499.9 kg for steers. Check the Association’s page before you quote a weight.

What do the criteria mean?

Each criterion excludes a different kind of beef: the wrong cattle, the wrong place or too little marbling.

• Cattle. Tajima-gyu names the cattle lineage. Kobe Beef comes only from it, and only from a heifer or steer.
• Origin. Hyogo is a prefecture. The rule is about where the animal was born and raised, not where the meat is cooked or sold.
• Scores. BMS is the marbling score, and 6 is the lowest the Association accepts. The yield grade and the meat quality score come from the same grading, so they are not the restaurant’s own rating. The Association’s bar is A or B for yield and 4 or above for quality.

The pieces combine. A Tajima-gyu steer born and raised in Hyogo whose carcass scores BMS 5 misses the marbling bar. A carcass with a high marbling score from cattle raised outside Hyogo misses the origin rule.

Who sets and checks the standard?

The Association sets the standard and is the registered group, the Japan Meat Grading Association grades the carcasses and MAFF lists the name as geographical indication number 3.

The Association’s pages are the reference for what the name requires, and the criteria above come from them. For a visitor, they are the first place to check a claim, and MAFF’s register confirms that the name is registered.

Is all wagyu Kobe Beef?

No. Kobe Beef needs Tajima-gyu cattle born and raised in Hyogo and a carcass at BMS 6 or higher. The word wagyu alone does not say which of those criteria the beef meets. A menu that names the cattle, the prefecture and the scores gives you something to check, and a menu that says only wagyu does not.

Ask three things before you order:

• Which cattle. Tajima-gyu, not only wagyu.
• Which prefecture. Born and raised in Hyogo.
• Which scores. BMS 6 or higher, yield grade A or B, meat quality 4 or above.

No wagyu grading scale beyond the Kobe criteria was found, so this page cannot say how Kobe Beef compares with other grades of wagyu. It states only what the Association’s pages require for the name.

What does a menu line tell you?

A menu line usually names one criterion. The table shows what each wording leaves open.

If a restaurant cannot give the cattle, the prefecture and the scores, treat its Kobe Beef claim as unconfirmed.

How do you find a Kobe Beef restaurant?

JNTO hosts an official Kobe Beef restaurant guide and map as a PDF. This page names no restaurant, and how the guide lists them is not confirmed. Open the guide before you choose, then put the three questions above to the restaurant.

Before you book Ask the restaurant to confirm that its beef is Kobe Beef under the Association’s standard, and ask what the menu price covers. No official price was found, so the restaurant’s own menu is the only source.

Can Muslim travellers eat Kobe Beef?

JNTO’s guide for Muslim travellers lists Kobe restaurants that serve halal-certified Kobe beef. The guide covers mosques, prayer facilities, dining and hotels, with regional guides from Hokkaido to Okinawa. JNTO’s page on Muslim-friendly tourism names no certifier and sets no defined level for the label “Muslim-friendly”. The guide adds that a halal-friendly restaurant may not have a separate halal kitchen, and that mirin and cooking sake are common, so check ingredients.

Ask the restaurant what certifies its halal claim and whether the kitchen is separate. Do this when you book, not at the table.

Where next?

The Food hub lists every food page, and the Food guide sets Kobe Beef beside the other regional dishes. Okonomiyaki: Osaka vs Hiroshima covers the other Kansai dish, and Kansai covers the region. What a meal costs in Japan has the chain price ladder, and Japan food markets covers where to buy food in person.