JA Saga, the largest agricultural cooperative (JA) in Saga prefecture, Kyushu Island, begins April to sell “dry-aged beef” of Saga-gyu, one of the most famous brand Wagyu (Japanese beef cattle) in Japan, after successfully testing sales at its own restaurant in Saga-shi, Saga prefecture.
The test sales of the dry-aged Saga beef have achieved a remarkable result. At Restaurant “Kira,” operated by JA Saga, a special dish of the dry-aged beef was tentatively put on the menu in February, which gained a great reputation. Foreign tourist guests particularly increased twice as many as an average of the same month in previous years.
A price of the special dish almost doubles that of a general beef meal. JA Saga aims to expand a network of outlets for its dry-aged beef so that member farmers feeding the Wagyu cattle can increase their income.
In the Japanese beef market, dry-aging has not been done for Wagyu beef, but mostly for red meats supplied by a dairy farming sector. JA Saga started up a new project of Wagyu beef dry-aging last summer.
The first test sale of the dry-aged beef was carried out at the restaurant Kira last November, when a special campaign of beef and wine sales was promoted in collaboration with Suntory Holdings Limited, one of major beverage manufacturers in Japan. The dry-aged beef dishes had a very favorable reputation and JA Saga decided to start a full-scale marketing of the beef in the Japanese market.
(March 6, 2016)