Hidagyu

"Hida Beef", boasting outstanding quality including marbling, won the Best Carcass Award for two consecutive years at the "Japan's National Competitive Exhibition of Wagyu ⁽¹⁾." At the Meat Market of the Metropolitan Central Wholesale Market, the prices of Grades 5 and 4 Hida Beef are 20% higher compared to the average castrated wagyu, and those of Grade 3 are almost 10% higher.

The accreditation criteria of "Hida Beef" are: fattening for at least 14 months by an accredited and registered producer(s) under the Hida Beef Brand Promotion Council's registered farmer system, being fed for the longest period in Gifu Prefecture, and having Japanese Meat Quality Grade ⁽²⁾ 5, 4 or 3 with yield grade of A or B according to the Beef Carcass Trading Standards of the Japan Meat Grading Association's beef carcass grading system.

In the producing area, individual farmers have taken actions to improve meat quality since the Taisho period ⁽³⁾. Since around 1950, collective efforts and fatting techniques have been respectively made to improve in order to establish a long-term and stable system for producing superior-quality beef cattle from the entire area..
　In January 1988, a council was launched to establish the brand of "Hida Beef," which was adopted as the unified prefectural brand. Since then, actions have been taken to improve "Hida Beef" in the prefecture, such as utilization and withholding of superior genes, creation of bulls using breeding values based on carcass information, and promotion of scientific improvement projects using cutting-edge technology for carcass information.
　Approximately 10,000 head of cattle are certified as Hida Beef annually. Systems for accrediting shops for selling Hida Beef and restaurants for serving Hida Beef were introduced in 1989 and 1990, respectively. Many shops and restaurants have been accredited within and outside of the prefecture.
　In 2008, a system of recommended overseas Hida Beef shops started; and numerous shops have been accredited overseas too. As of January 2022, there are 168 shops designated to sell Hida Beef, 193 restaurants designated to serve Hida Beef, and 59 recommended overseas shops for Hida Beef.

1. Japan's National Competitive Exhibition of Wagyu: A competitive exhibition for Wagyu (Japanese Black) held once every five years.
2. Japanese Meat Quality Grade: An index of beef quality that ranks meat from grades one to five, with five the highest. Four elements go into an overall meat quality grade: "beef marbling", "flesh color and luster", "flesh firmness and texture", and "fat color, luster and quality."
3. Taisho period: 1912 to 1926. A period in the history of Japan, and the shortest of all periods. Modernization continued as in the Meiji period, and democracy was advocated through the pro-Constitution movement and the establishment of a party cabinet.