ABOUT WAGYU BEEF
WAGYU - a Japanese beef cattle breed – derive from native Asian cattle. 'WAGYU' refers to all Japanese beef cattle, where 'Wa' means Japanese and 'gyu' means cow.
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Wagyu were originally draft animals used in agriculture, and were selected for their physical endurance. This selection favored animals with more intra-muscular fat cells – ‘marbling’ – which provided a readily available energy source.
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While Wagyu can refer to any Japanese cow, the Wagyu we all want on our plate refers to a specific breed of Japanese cattle with special genetic qualities. Of the four breeds of cattle native to Japan, one has a genetic predisposition to create marbling of fat on inside of it's muscle tissue. This is the only breed of livestock known to do this. These cows metabolize the fat internally, so it’s integrated within the muscle.
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Health Benefits
Scientists have found that Wagyu Beef is healthier than your run of the mill beef. "The mono-unsaturated to saturated fat ratio is higher in Wagyu than in other beef and, the saturated fat contained in Wagyu is different. Forty percent is in a version called stearic acid, which is regarded as having a minimal impact in raising cholesterol levels. Wagyu is also higher in a type of fatty acid called conjugated linoleic acid (CLA). Wagyu beef contain the highest amount of CLA per gram of any foodstuff – about 30% more than other beef breeds – due to higher linoleic acid levels. Foods that are naturally high in CLA have fewer negative health effects."
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The picture shows an A5 Wagyu Ribeye. This is the highest grade of Wagyu and really shows the incredible marbling capabilities of these animals.
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-wagyu.org
