HeartLands Wagyu — HeartLands Farm & Ranch

WAGYU HISTORY

Wagyu beef is highly marbled, meaning that the muscle is finely interspersed with monounsaturated fat. This marbling gives the beef its “melt in the mouth” moisture and tenderness. When cooked, the marbling is absorbed into the muscle and gives the meat its tenderness and flavour.

Many outside of Japan have attempted to document the history of Wagyu cattle. When it has been reported in Japan that performance was being sought through genetic gain, it has been widely interpreted by Westerners as being beef production, when in actual fact it was performance as a draft or pack animal.

Dr. Kiyoshi Namikawa, a leading Wagyu expert in Japan, authored a Breeding History of Japanese Beef Cattle in the mid 1980s. This document provides a well written history of Wagyu cattle in Japan.

WAGYU IN AMERICA

In 1976, the first importation of Japanese Wagyu bulls occurred. These bulls came from the Hyogo, Tottori, and Okayama prefectures in Japan. The sire lines had been exported to the USA for research into meat quality in 1976 at Texas A&M University.

During trade discussions in 1992 between the Japanese government and the US government, an agreement was made to allow Japanese Wagyu females to be exported from Japan. Following this agreement, additional bulls and females arrived in the USA in 1993, 1994, and 1998. After 1998, no further exports of Japanese Wagyu have been allowed from Japan.

In the USA, the Japanese Wagyu cattle are known as Fullblood Wagyu (100% Wagyu). The American Wagyu Association maintains a registry of the Fullblood Wagyu which requires three-way DNA parent verification to assure the integrity of each animal’s pedigree traceable to its respective Japanese origins.

Over the years, HeartLands Ranch has obtained the genetics of the proven imported Japanese Black Wagyu bulls and combined them with American Red Angus bloodlines. The ranch has built one of the best American Wagyu/Red Angus herds in the USA through their AI program.

HEALTH BENEFITS

Wagyu cattle have been extensively studied in Japan and in the United States. Washington State University, Kansas State University, Pennsylvania State University, Texas A&M University, and others have done extensive research into the fat produced by Wagyu cattle and effects of dietary fatty acids. Research at Washington State University has shown that Wagyu beef has about a 2:1 ratio of monounsaturated fatty acid to saturated fatty acid compared to British cattle with a 1:1 ratio and other studies have shown that higher monounsaturated fatty acid in the diet is associated with lower cardio vascular disease. Thus, Wagyu meat is not only rich in taste and tenderness, but it is perfectly suitable for a part of a well balanced healthy diet.

According to Dr. Stephen B. Smith from the Department of Animal Science at Texas A&M University, Wagyu beef is the healthiest beef we can produce. Also, corn-fed beef is good for you, and the brisket contains the healthiest fat on the carcass. When you produce high quality beef, you also produce healthy beef.

In Japan, beef palatability is positively correlated with the amount of Oleic acid in beef. The Asian markets prefer beef that contains elevated oleic acid (softer fat).

The results of a study led by Dr. Smith found that Oleic acid has positive health benefits. Increasing Oleic acid in beef has a measurable effect on cholesterol metabolism in human subjects. According to Kris-Etherton and Yu, 1997, foods high in Oleic acid decrease LDL cholesterol and increase HDL cholesterol.

Smith found that modifying the fatty acid composition of beef can be done naturally and practically. Further, beef from Wagyu cattle is healthier because it is genetically enriched with Oleic acid. As we increase Oleic acid through feeding programs, saturated and trans-fatty acids in beef are reduced.