Takachiho Beef
Among the highlights of Japanese cuisine prized overseas is wagyu beef. Takachiho is known in particular for its beef, with local producers winning the Prime Minister’s Award in 2007 at the Ninth National Japanese Beef Ability Expo, also known as the “Wagyu Olympics.” Two hundred of the 500,000 cows raised in the area are groomed as Takachiho beef each year, feeding on pasture grass and drinking spring water from the 1,756-meter Mt. Sobo nearby. Such limited numbers mean the beef is not often shipped outside of the immediate area, but the excellent quality of the beef draws diners eager to taste the high-quality marbled beef produced here. The heritage of careful cattle raising in Takachiho is not only the result of on-going efforts to improve stock since the Meiji era (1868–1912) but also by careful nurturing of the breed since early in the twentieth century.