A team of 24 leaders and producers from beef, pork, corn and soybean organizations from across the U.S. visited Japan in early September.
The group visited retail displays, a beef tongue processing facility, a processing facility and Wagyu auction in the heart of Tokyo and shared photos of their farms with students at a culinary school. They also received staff briefings from U.S. Meat Export Federation (USMEF) Japan and the USDA Foreign Agricultural Service.
Travis Maddock, a cattle producer from Maddock, N.D., who was on the tour representing the North Dakota Beef Commission, notes Japanese consumers are used to high marbling in domestic Wagyu, which makes U.S. Prime a good fit for the market. Meanwhile, demand in Japan for variety meats like tongues builds carcass value for U.S. producers.
A Five-Decade Footprint in Tokyo
In July, USMEF marked a major milestone: Japan surpassed $100 billion in cumulative imports of U.S. beef and pork since trade development began.
USMEF was established in 1976 and opened its first international office in Tokyo just a year later. USMEF President and CEO Dan Halstrom points out this longstanding presence paved the way for steady, high-value commerce.
“It’s one of the first markets that really got involved in the chilled pork and beef business, which means it’s a 52-week-a-year business,” Halstrom says. “Our goal across all markets is to convert as much of that business into chilled meat as possible, moving away from frozen commodity product where we can.”
Educating Consumers at the Meat Case
Cheryl DeVuyst, chair of the Cattlemen’s Beef Board and professor of agricultural economics at Oklahoma State University, joined the delegation and commends the retail marketing on display at Tokyo’s Ito-Yokado supermarket.
“It’s great to see, ‘Think beef, think American. The American beef is for you,’” she stresses.
Because Japanese consumers are accustomed to thinly sliced meats for traditional dishes, preparing thicker U.S. steak cuts requires ongoing consumer education, making in-store cooking demonstrations essential.
“Japanese Wagyu is typically sliced very thin, so retailers are teaching consumers how to prepare American beef,” DeVuyst explains. “USMEF works directly with retail locations to demonstrate how to cook U.S. beef cut to these thicker standards.”
Checkoff Collaboration Sustains Value
Despite elevated prices driven in part by a historically low U.S. cattle inventory, Japanese shoppers remain willing to pay for quality.
“They’re still able to pay that premium because they demand our quality and taste,” Halstrom says. “This success is the result of decades of Checkoff support, backing from the USDA Foreign Agricultural Service, and U.S. exporters working closely with the trade here in Japan.”
