Maesawa Gyu

Maesawa Gyu is a beef product from Japan registered under the Geographical Indication (GI) system. It was registered on 3 March 2017 with registration number 28. The product category is classified as "Meat". Maesawa Gyu is produced in the Maesawa district of Ōshū City in Iwate Prefecture. The applicant is the Iwate Furusato Agricultural Cooperative, located at 131-1 Oyama-aza-Sugayachi, Isawa District, Ōshū City, Iwate Prefecture, 023-0402 Japan.

Maesawa beef has a fine, marbled, and moist texture. This meat is suitable for various dishes such as grilled beef, sukiyaki, shabu-shabu, and steak. Additionally, there are Maesawa beef patties cooked to perfection and known as "the toro of the country".

Maesawa Gyu is derived from beef cattle raised for many years in the Maesawa area of Ōshū City, Iwate Prefecture. The cattle raised in this region are castrated Japanese Black cattle, and efforts are made to avoid competition with other production areas to ensure superior livestock quality. The cattle are reared in a stress-free environment. High-quality rice straw produced locally is used as feed. The development of the meat’s marbled texture requires specialized techniques. With an average herd size of about 25 head per farm, producers carefully raise each animal using their own methods.

The Maesawa region has a geographical location well suited for rice cultivation. The Kitakami River flows through the center of the region. Additionally, abundant water from snowmelt originating in the Ōu Mountain Range and the Kitakami Mountains contributes to fertile soil structure. This enables the region to produce large quantities of high-quality, clean rice straw.

The region was historically a center for horse breeding. In the 1950s, breeding cattle were introduced from Okayama and Shimane prefectures to begin Japanese Black cattle production. At that time, calves were raised only for breeding purposes and not for fattening, and prices were low. Under these conditions, the Maesawa Town Agricultural Cooperative Union was established in 1965, and a special fattening subcommittee was formed to initiate the fattening of Japanese Black cattle. Subsequently, research and training programs were launched to improve fattening management and technology, including the organization of management courses and the invitation of specialized instructors to enhance production techniques across the region. These efforts led to increased beef cattle production, and carcass information from shipped cattle was provided to producers.